I’ve been to many supper clubs in London over the last four years, tasting home-cooked dishes from different Italian regions as well as international cuisines such as Mauritian, Brazilian, Indian and Japanese. And yet That Hungry Chef “Perfume: An Edible Scent” dinner was unlike anything I have never experienced at a supper club before.
Chef Pratap Chahal launched his catering business That Hungry Chef in 2013, having previously worked with Gordon Ramsay at Claridge’s, at Chez Bruce, at Cinnamon Club and at Galvin Bistrot. In addition to private catering, Pratap runs supper clubs from his home, combining his experience working with Michelin restaurants with his own style of cooking.
The menu at That Hungry Chef supper club change regularly, featuring 3-6 course meals or a traditional Indian ‘thali’ where Pratap draws inspiration from the royal houses of India. The cuisine style combines the best of British and Indian culinary heritage with global influences from Pratap’s travels around the world.
I attended an event titled “Perfume: An Edible Scent Supper club” which as you may guess featured a menu all themed around the concept of perfume.
We gathered at Pratap’s and his wife Nikhat’s home in Islington; their dining room is a welcoming space filled with fantastic vintage and antique Indian furniture.
Pratap worked on the menu for months, taking inspiration from Mandy Aftel’s book “Fragrant: The Secret Life of Scent” and incorporating the fleeting and surreal world of perfume into a dinner. To create the different scents, Pratap used organic and pure natural essential oils, absolutes and essences.
The dinner started with “Top Notes” of cedar wood and bergamot.
Thyme soda bread with Atlas cedar wood scented butter
Beetroot, bergamot, orange & mustard
The main courses brought in the “Middle Notes” with a sandalwood, tobacco and cocoa.
Grilled sandalwood monkfish, pea relish & saffron crispbread
Roast lamb with tobacco & cocoa absolutes, spring vegetables & curried yoghurt
Roasted black tomato stuffed with tobaccco infused mushroom marmalade, spring vegetables, curried yoghurt.
The dinner ended with “Bottom Notes” of frankincense, pine and vetiver.
Chocolate & black pepper mousse, frankincense sponge, pine ice cream
Vetiver tartlet, melon, poppy & fennel seed brittle
I loved every dish and I was particularly impressed by how Pratap developed equally impressive vegetarian dishes for my husband. Overall the supper club was brilliant and flawlessly executed.
At the end of the dinner all the guests received a goodie bag with two jars from That Hungry Chef relish product range. My husband has since become addicted to the “Mojo Rising” Thai Green Chilli Relish, which is dangerously hot but delicious! The range of Pratap’s relishes and pickles is available from his shop online and is also in stock at Selfridges.
Disclaimer: I was a guest at the dinner. All opinions expressed on my blog are my own.
Wow everything seems to be absolutely delicious, expecially the desserts :P Never heard of supper clubs neither but seems interesting!
Nancy | https://arkitalker.wordpress.com/
Those dishes look absolutely delicious! I’ve never heard of supper clubs before but they sound fun!
Sachie // lovelycomplex.net
What a brilliant idea and I like the look of the frankincense sponge!
Suze | LuxuryColumnist