Published by iHeartPodcasts
For more than 30 years The River Cafe in London, has been the home-from-home of artists, architects, designers, actors, collectors, writers, activists, and politicians. Michael Caine, Glenn Close, JJ Abrams, Steve McQueen, Victoria and David Beckham, and Lily Allen, are just some of the people who love to call The River Cafe home. On River Cafe Table 4, Rogers sits down with her customers—who have become friends—to talk about food memories. Table 4 explores how food impacts every aspect of our lives. “Foods is politics, food is cultural, food is how you express love, food is about your heritage, it defines who you and who you want to be,” says Rogers. Each week, Rogers invites her guest to reminisce about family suppers and first dates, what they cook, how they eat when performing, the restaurants they choose, and what food they seek when they need comfort. And to punctuate each episode of Table 4, guests such as Ralph Fiennes, Emily Blunt, and Alfonso Cuarón, read their favourite recipe from one of the best-selling River Cafe cookbooks. Table 4 itself, is situated near The River Cafe’s open kitchen, close to the bright pink wood-fired oven and next to the glossy yellow pass, where Ruthie oversees the restaurant. You are invited to take a seat at this intimate table and join the conversation. For more information, recipes, and ingredients, go to https://shoptherivercafe.co.uk/ Web: https://rivercafe.co.uk/ Instagram: www.instagram.com/therivercafelondon/ Facebook: https://en-gb.facebook.com/therivercafelondon/ For more podcasts from iHeartRadio, visit the iheartradio app, apple podcasts, or wherever you listen to your favorite shows. Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.com
Listen on Apple PodcastsDorothée Boissier is a unique designer. Together with her husband, Patrick Gilles, she has built both a family and an internationally renowned design studio, creating exquisite architecture and interiors around the world. Today, we're at Moncler's beautiful flagship store on the Champs-Élysées, designed by Dorothée and Patrick. We'll talk about Paris, food, creative partnership, and the art of designing restaurants. Order Table 4 at The River Cafe —the star-studded, food-filled book inspired by the beloved podcast: https://bit.ly/Table4AtRiverCafeBook See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
Good food and good clothes should do the same thing: make you feel instantly comfortable, confident, and completely at home. In this episode Ruthie sits down with Clare Hornby, the visionary entrepreneur founder and CEO of ME+EM. Clare has built the UK's fastest-growing luxury label by mastering "intelligent style" -creating crafted, functional wardrobes for women. Bound by a shared love for exceptional ingredients in food and fashion, Ruthie and Clare talk about friendship, building a business from scratch, the food memories that shape them, and much much more. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
Ruthie speaks to her brother, screenwriter and author Michael Elias, about his latest novel, Bender's LA. In the coke-dusted canyons and deal-making rooms of 1970s Los Angeles, writer David Bender sets out to remake his life - romantically, professionally, and spiritually - after his wife walks out in Puerto Vallarta with a single sentence and a suitcase. Order a copy now: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Benders-L-Michael-Elias/dp/B0GWC41TVM See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
Zanny Minton Beddoes and I have different professions, and different workplaces. As editor-in-chief of The Economist, hers is in the newsroom mine is the kitchen. But we have much in common, sharing a message of honesty - me with ingredients, Zanny with words. And we both have time limits - in the case of this conversation, just 20 minutes which we recorded live onstage at the Google Zeitgeist conference. In this brief time, we explored her work and life through the lens of food. And what a life it is. Order Table 4 at The River Cafe —the star-studded, food-filled book inspired by the beloved podcast: https://bit.ly/Table4AtRiverCafeBook See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
Ab Rogers explains his fascination with wine and why he prefers grapes that have had to fight for their survival. Order Table 4 at The River Cafe —the star-studded, food-filled book inspired by the beloved podcast: https://bit.ly/Table4AtRiverCafeBook See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
Ab Rogers is a visionary designer. He is also my stepson. For over 50 years, we’ve been side by side, taking adventures together. Today, we’re together in the River Cafe to share stories - memories of his father and my husband Richard Rogers - travels, families, work and food. We will also talk about five women who inspired the way he cooks, and the creative methods he uses to bring ingredients together, creating some of the most delicious food I’ve eaten in my life. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
Erin Lyall, a conflict producer for CBS News, reveals what it's like to eat with soldiers, how an army feeds itself, and how she personally recovers after the strain of working in a war zone. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
As a conflict producer for CBS News, Erin Lyall has eaten with Ukrainian soldiers on the freezing front line, cooked with families in their homes in Gaza, and shared meals on the battlefields of Syria and Iraq with bullets sounding in the distance. From these experiences in the field, Erin created Food Under Fire, a unique food blog featuring recipes, anecdotes, and portraits of the people she's met on her journalistic travels. Today, we're together in the safety of the River Café to talk about how food can bring us together, both in war and in peace. Order Table 4 at The River Cafe —the star-studded, food-filled book inspired by the beloved podcast: https://bit.ly/Table4AtRiverCafeBook See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
Graham Norton reveals what he learned from working in restaurants, what he noticed about tricky customers, and why he would recommend the experience to everyone. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
This week marks a very special occasion. My friend, Mel Brooks, is turning 100. For the best part of a century, he has lit up the world with his warmth and humour, delighting audiences as a writer, director, actor and comedian. From The Producers and Blazing Saddles to Young Frankenstein, his unique talents have left an indelible mark on film, television and theatre. To celebrate Mel, we're going to revisit some of the best moments from his wonderful appearance on Ruthie's Table 4, back in 2023 - one of my favourite ever episodes. We talk about the food of his childhood in Brooklyn, keeping carp in the bathtub, eating in the army, his friendship with Cary Grant, his uncanny impression of a cat, and many more memories from one of the greatest storytellers of our time. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
To be a truly great host, as Graham Norton is every week on his television sofa, you have to understand and genuinely like people. It's the same for me at the River Café. There's no such thing as a difficult customer. Everybody has a story, and every table is a world. Usually it's Graham asking the questions, but today, he's answering mine—about his early years in an American commune, his time working in restaurants, cooking, writing, and the art of hosting. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
Last September, at the Venice Film Festival, I went to see Agon — a radical and powerful film. Afterwards, I immediately changed my schedule to attend a dinner for its director, Giulio Bertelli. Today, Giulio and I are back together in Hammersmith to discuss his filmmaking, the food of his childhood in Milan, his time as a professional sailor, the history of food and seafaring, and the company he has built as he looks to food's future. Order Table 4 at The River Cafe —the star-studded, food-filled book inspired by the beloved podcast: https://bit.ly/Table4AtRiverCafeBook See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
Everyone knows Piers Morgan as a journalist, editor, and fearless interviewer. But I also know him as someone who loves food and can describe in detail what makes a great restaurant. Today, we're here together to talk about growing up in his family's country pub, the postcard he cherishes from his mother, drinks with Bill Clinton, dining with Tom Hanks, and seeing the glass half full. Order Table 4 at The River Cafe —the star-studded, food-filled book inspired by the beloved podcast: https://bit.ly/Table4AtRiverCafeBook See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
Ruth Porat - President and Chief Investment Officer of Google and Alphabet - discusses the social responsibilities that come with technological advancement and how AI must be used to tackle society’s most intractable problems. Order Table 4 at The River Cafe —the star-studded, food-filled book inspired by the beloved podcast: https://bit.ly/Table4AtRiverCafeBook See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
Ruth Porat is the President and Chief Investment Officer of Google and Alphabet. She is also my friend. Her extraordinary schedule has often kept us thousands of miles apart as she moves across continents, connecting people, ideas, and communities. But today, we’re together at last - a Ruth and a Ruthie - to talk about the importance of food at Google, her scientific childhood, how her father survived the Holocaust to rebuild his family, and how her grandmother spent her last day showing love through food. Order Table 4 at The River Cafe - the star-studded, food-filled book inspired by the beloved podcast: https://bit.ly/Table4AtRiverCafeBook See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
Consello CEO Declan Kelly discusses his decision to become a vegetarian as a teenager in 1980s Ireland, and how he eats today. Order Table 4 at The River Cafe —the star-studded, food-filled book inspired by the beloved podcast: https://bit.ly/Table4AtRiverCafeBook See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
A few months ago, I met Declan Kelly, founder, Chairman, and CEO of Consello, one of the world’s most influential advisory firms. The connection between us was immediate, as I discovered a fascinating person with a fascinating life. Born in rural Ireland, from humble beginnings, he became an important journalist, created an influential communications company and in 2007 and 2008 served as one of the leading advisers to Hillary Clinton during her presidential campaign. Today he advises some of the most influential people who lead powerful institutions, while mentoring a new generation. Order Table 4 at The River Cafe —the star-studded, food-filled book inspired by the beloved podcast: https://bit.ly/Table4AtRiverCafeBook See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
The River Café’s Sian Wyn Owen joins Michael and Lindsay Tusk to discuss the menu she has prepared for the day, the seasonal ingredients she is using, and how she organises a lunch service with her team. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
Chef Michael Tusk and his wife and partner, Lindsay Tusk, believe great food is about simplicity, quality ingredients, and happiness. A few months ago in San Francisco, I saw this for myself at their restaurants - Quince, Cotogna, and wine bar, Verjus. Today, on a beautiful spring day at the River Café we will talk about creating food what we look for in a restaurant, and much more. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
Patrick Radden Keefe talks about two contrasting food pleasures - hosting and eating alone. Order Table 4 at The River Cafe —the star-studded, food-filled book inspired by the beloved podcast: https://bit.ly/Table4AtRiverCafeBook See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
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Observed August 1, 2026.
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