Ruthie's Table 4
iHeart Podcast Network
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
Location:
United States
Genres:
Food & Cooking Podcasts
Networks:
iHeart Podcast Network
Description:
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
Language:
English
Episodes
(Bonus Episode) Alexandra Mousavizadeh remembers traditional Danish cuisine
7/9/2025
In this week's bonus, Alexandra Mousavizadeh remembers the food of her childhood in Denmark. She and I discuss its roots in Viking times - heavily grounded in fishing and foraging - and how this laid the foundation for Denmark as a food mecca.
Ruthie's Table 4, made in partnership with Moncler.
See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
Duration:00:04:51
Alexandra Mousavizdeh on AI opportunities, losing a finger and Persian cuisine
7/7/2025
Alexandra Mousavizadeh is my closest friend, and yet I have little idea how to describe what she does. This I do know: she’s an economist, an expert in game theory, and co-founded Evident in 2022 to benchmark companies on their AI performance.
In Alexandra's house, the place I love most is her kitchen and the smell of an extraordinary Persian rice. Alexandra and I are here together to talk about food, technology, the future, friends, family, and not being afraid. You'll learn about this remarkable friend of mine and I will learn what in fact she does, always with love.
Ruthie's Table 4, made in partnership with Moncler.
See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
Duration:00:41:54
(Bonus Episode) Catering for 700 at the Tate Modern's 25th anniversary
7/5/2025
In this behind-the-scenes bonus, I talk with executive chefs Sian Owen and Joseph Trivelli about the challenges and rewards of cooking for hundreds of guests to celebrate the Tate Modern's 25th birthday. We pay tribute to the tireless work of those who made it happen and reflect on grating kilos of parmesan and zesting endless lemons.
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Duration:00:19:32
(Bonus Episode) John Lithgow on his Great British Bake Off appearance
7/2/2025
In this bonus episode, John Lithgow recalls appearing on the celebrity edition of The Great British Bake Off, his attempt to make a Swiss roll which was deemed 'not sellable in any cake shop', as well making a Winston Churchill gingerbread man.
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Duration:00:04:22
John Lithgow discusses playing Roald Dahl, appearing on Bake Off - and sings with Ruthie
6/30/2025
John Lithgow has played a cardinal, serial killer, prime minister, alien and president. But the role I know him best in is as a great friend.
John is currently living in London, playing Roald Dahl in Giant to rave reviews. I’ve seen it three times.
We met at The River Cafe on Father’s Day, to talk about acting and food, theatre and food, film and food, family and food. And of course, friendship and food.
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Duration:00:36:18
(Bonus Episode) Behind the scenes at The River Cafe over Father's Day
6/25/2025
In this special bonus episode, I take you 'behind the scenes' with The River Cafe's executive chefs Sian Owen and Joseph Trivelli, talking about a busy Sunday lunch for Father’s Day, how to make the perfect pesto, and why DOP basil is so special.
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Duration:00:16:21
Keith McNally on meeting Rose Gray, problem-solving at Balthazar, and SNL parties
6/23/2025
From the moment Rose and I thought about doing The River Café, Rose made it clear that everything she knew, she had learned from Keith McNally, a hero of restaurants — with The Odeon, Pastis, Balthazar, Lucky Strike to name a few.
I’d been wanting to read his memoir ‘I Regret Almost Everything’ for some time. But the first chapter nearly finished me. In the very first sentence, Keith writes about his attempted suicide in Martha’s Vineyard, following a stroke in 2016. It’s painful to absorb as a reader, but for a friend, it’s monumental.
Keith is here with me today to talk about friends, family, writing a book and most of all ‘regretting almost everything’.
Ruthie's Table 4, made in partnership with Moncler.
See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
Duration:00:30:55
Nili Lotan on the five key at her fashion company, her grandmother’s recipe book, and working for Ralph Lauren
6/16/2025
Nili Lotan is not only a brilliant designer, and an entrepreneur. A woman with strong values she has held onto since starting her own fashion company, she advocates for peace, she supports women and working mothers.
She and I both believe that great design, whether food or fashion, is about simplicity, precision, and timelessness. We talk about food and architecture, food and politics, food and family, food and fashion.
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Duration:00:34:41
Q&A special - Ruthie answers your questions with executive chefs, Sian Wyn Owen and Joseph Trivelli
6/9/2025
In The River Cafe, we like a question. One of the reasons we have an open kitchen is that everything is on view and even our customers ask for tips on how to prepare their favourite meals.
This week, Sian Wyn Owen, Joseph Trivelli and I are answering questions you have sent in. When and what to eat, our favourite seasons and much more.
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Duration:00:35:20
Graydon Carter on the Vanity Fair Oscar party, banning people from his restaurant and profiling Trump
6/2/2025
Looking at all the work Graydon Carter has done over the years, what it would be like to be one of his creations?
As Spy magazine, I'd be fearless, funny, ahead of my time, radical and brave. Were I Vanity Fair, I'd be glamorous and erudite. Say I was his restaurant, The Waverly Inn, I'd be delicious, nestled in a beautiful corner of Greenwich Village. As Airmail, I would fly through the air every week, telling everyone what they need to know.
And were I one of his five children or his beautiful wife Anna, I'd know what it feels like to be the focus of Graydon’s life.
As for his newly published memoir, When The Going Was Good, I'd be unputdownable and number five on the New York Times bestseller list.
But I would trade any of these just to be Graydon's friend, and that is what I am.
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Duration:00:34:29
(Bonus Episode) The underground menu at Anthony Scaramucci's restaurant, Hunt & Fish Club
5/28/2025
In this week's bonus, Anthony Scaramucci compares the challenges involved at his restaurant Hunt & Fish Club with Ruthie's at The River Cafe. Plus, he shares some of the items on the underground menu, including the secret meatballs.
Ruthie's Table 4, made in partnership with Moncler.
See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
Duration:00:06:11
Anthony Scaramucci describes stomping grapes, getting fired by Trump and overcoming adversity
5/26/2025
In my career, I've been a chef, an author and now a podcaster. In Anthony Scaramucci’s career, he’s been Communication Director in the White House, a financial genius, founding Sky Capital, and the host of the podcast The Rest is Politics: US.
We’ve both had our ups and downs. His may have been higher ups and maybe downer downs, but we're not here to compete. We're here to talk about food, politics, family and memories. To date, I've only spent about 10 minutes with Anthony, but it doesn't feel that way. For me, the night we met in The River Cafe was an immediate connection. How lucky am I to have him here today? How lucky am I to share stories? How lucky am I to kind of feel he's my friend?
Ruthie's Table 4, made in partnership with Moncler.
See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
Duration:00:41:19
Bonus episode - The parallel between theatres and restaurants with Cate Blanchett
5/21/2025
In this bonus episode, Cate Blanchett and Ruthie reflect on the similarities between a theatre performance and a restaurant kitchen.
Ruthie's Table 4, made in partnership with Moncler.
See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
Duration:00:03:20
Cate Blanchett on growing her own food, multiculturalism, and a disastrous Christmas dinner
5/19/2025
People ask me who my dream guest would be on Ruthie‘s Table 4. Cate Blanchett has always been top of the list - an actor, director and vocal activist for values and ideas close to my heart.
Cate lives with purpose in the countryside in East Sussex, keeping bees, growing vegetables in her garden, cooking and eating seasonally.
Here we are at The River Cafe on the beautiful first day of summer weather. The sun is shining, the chefs are cooking and the garden is flowering. Cate and I are going to talk about our shared love of food, family and art. As a special treat, I even asked her to bring a bottle of Toku, the saké brand for whom she is creative director, and get to sample what makes it so special. A dream come true indeed.
Made in partnership with Moncler.
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Duration:00:33:41
Dana Strong on running Sky Group, chicken soup every day and global cuisine
5/12/2025
Dana Strong, CEO of Sky Group, is one of the busiest people I know. One of the most powerful people in global media, she leads a team of thousands across news, sport, film, and television. But somehow, Dana always makes time for talking, friendship, her family, and for me. One of the most special things for me is breakfast with Dana at my home, at the kitchen table, sharing toast, coffee and stories.
Our mutual friend Tim Davies, Director General of the BBC, told me this morning that she's a rare American who truly gets the Brits. He says she has a European soul. Today we're together at the River Cafe. I'm sure it's a busy day for her, and it is kind of busy for me too. But for now, I have all the time in the world to spend with this woman I adore, I respect, and I love.
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Duration:00:39:27
Richard E. Grant on eating the same seven meals growing up, Henry Higgins and coping with loss
5/5/2025
When I think of Richard E. Grant, of course I think of his brilliant films and him as a great actor. But what I really think of is Richard and his wife Joan in the early days of The River Cafe. They were married a year before the restaurant opened and lived right across the river, coming in for lunch, always sitting at the same table, warm, lovely and absorbed in each other.
I remember their daughter Olivia being born a few years later and them bringing her in as a baby, when the restaurant was still small and starting up, just like her. Now, over thirty years later, Richard and I share something else in common: the loss of the partner we loved. We are in The River Cafe again to talk about the joy of family, food, friendship, and most of all, the joy of love.
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Duration:00:43:14
Alison Loehnis on NET-A-PORTER, being a working mother, food memories and growing up in Manhattan
4/28/2025
Alison Loehnis and I have much in common — we’re two American women living abroad, we both adore the small seaside towns of Liguria, and we share a favourite bookstore: Heywood Hill in Mayfair.
Alison grew up in Manhattan with a mother who was a passionate cook. She discovered the joy of food and fashion early on—licking brownie spoons next to her mother and elegantly accessorising her school uniform. She channelled her ambition into a dynamic career spanning Saatchi & Saatchi, Disney, LVMH, and now NET-A-PORTER.
Today, Alison and I are here at Table 4 to talk food and fashion, leadership and womanhood, balancing work and family—and, of course, planning our next trip to New York City. What could be better?
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Duration:00:46:02
Jony Ive
4/21/2025
One of the questions I’m often asked is where and when did you meet Sir Jony Ive, the person whose designs changed the world? We met at the White House at a spectacular state dinner when Barack Obama was president and hope was in the air. It was the beginning of one of the most important friendships I have.
Jony’s designs for Apple with Steve Jobs transformed the way we live. On my wrist is the Apple Watch, counting my steps and checking my heartbeat. On FaceTime last night, I read a bedtime story to my granddaughter. Often the last thing I read is a text from Jony on my iPhone asking ‘How are you, Ruthie? How was your day?’ But today, my friend is not 5,000 miles away but here in the River Café next to me, as close as can be.
Made in partnership with Moncler.
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Duration:00:28:47
David Chipperfield
4/14/2025
A few months ago, my friend David Chipperfield, the Pritzker and Stirling Prize-winning architect, asked me to support the work his foundation is doing on the food markets in Galicia. So here I am, in north-west Spain, to talk with him in front of an audience for a special live event.
David's introduction to Galicia was 33 years ago on a visit to Corrubedo, a small seaside village, where he and his wife Evelyn created a home. Now they have a small bar in the middle of the village. David is as passionate about Galicia's farm-to-table culture as he is about its people. For him, it's all part of the same conversation. Conversation that I am so excited and grateful to be having here with him in Casa Ria.
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Duration:00:33:28
Amanda Sharp
4/7/2025
In 2018, the River Cafe opened a second restaurant at the Frieze Art Fair in Regent’s Park. It was only for a few days and not something we would think of doing, but we said yes for three reasons. Because art is food and food is art. Because Frieze is the greatest art fair in the world. And most of all, because of our friendship and deep admiration for the founders, Amanda Sharp and Matthew Slotover. Friends of Amanda will tell you she is curious about the world and the people around her. She says that art is like cooking, making something incredible out of basic ingredients. Today, I'm the one who will be curious about Amanda as we talk about food and memories, artists and chefs, and much more.
Ruthie's Table 4, made in partnership with Moncler.
See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
Duration:00:35:36