River Cafe Table 4

Over the last year, I’ve had the great luck to sit with 46 fabulous guests on our podcast ‘River Café Table 4’ - talking about food, family, and memories. Everyone has read a recipe from a River Cafe cook book and shared stories about cooking and eating in their favourite restaurants. In September we will be back for Season 2 - with a new name: ‘RUTHIE ROGERS TABLE 4’.

Gwyneth Paltrow, Wolfgang Puck, Mel Brooks and many more will b...

As Barack Obama’s chief fundraiser, Matthew Barzun was acclaimed for encouraging many small-scale donors to contribute in 2008 and again in 2012. As the United States Ambassador to the United Kingdom, Barzun, together with his wife Brooke, initiated town meetings in schools all over Britain, and opened up Winfield House, his official residence, to artists, musicians, writers, actors -hosting celebrations, concerts, political forums...

In front of the camera and behind, Danny Huston has spent his life in movies.

Danny, son of John Huston, grew up watching rushes, travelling to film locations, and meeting all the great actors. Later directing, producing and acting in films and television series: Mr North, Fade to Black, The Constant Gardener, Succession and much more.

I knew Danny loves food, but nothing could have impressed me more than when, of all The River Caf...

Valerie Biden Owen’s family are typical Americans in some ways, but not that typical. Her brother Joe is the President of the United States.  In today's River Cafe Table 4 she and Ruthie will be talking about food and family, from the kitchen table of her childhood home to the White House dining room and Air Force One.

For more than 30 years The River Cafe in London, has been the home-from-home of artists, architects, designers...

Recently a friend led me across a crowded room with the words—“Talk to this man about food; he is passionate!”

So, I did  - and put away all my questions about the dynamic, social and radical philanthropic work that Darren Walker does as CEO of the Ford Foundation. After 10 minutes of stories and memories of his childhood and the food he ate in Lafayette, Louisiana, I asked him to pause suggesting we do this on River Cafe Table 4.

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When Ruthie was asked to debut a live podcast, her first call was to Josh Berger.

In his thirty years at Warner Bros. UK, Josh gave audiences some of Hollywood’s greatest movies – Harry Potter, A Star is Born, and The Hangover and with his role as chairman of the British Film Institute he helped make London a city of movie-goers and moviemakers.

On Broadway he co-produced the Tony Award­–winning musical Ain’t Too Proud: The Life an...

My favourite line in this conversation from our 41st episode of River Cafe Table 4, is Austin Butler saying he and I are ‘family’.

Austin arrived straight from playing Elvis Presley in Baz Luhrmann’s movie ‘Elvis’ in January 2021 and we met soon after.

London was just out of a COVID lockdown and, needing an immediate tradition, we decided to have dinner at my home every Sunday night with the same small group of friends. Austin woul...

When Congressman Adam Schiff came to London, giving a dinner for him in our home was a great honour. On Episode 40 of River Cafe Table 4, Ruthie and Adam talk about the food he grew up with, the food he cooks for his family, and the food he finds personally comforting. 

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 politici...

Everybody is interested in process. How do actors memorize their lines, how does an airplane stay up in the sky?

The question I'm most often asked is how does a restaurant work?

How do you know how many portions of sea bass to order? What do you do when a chef calls in sick?

The answers to these questions ? It's people. And two very important people for me are Sian Wyn Owen and Joseph Travelli, Executive Chefs in the River ...

Mark Carney does more than you can imagine – previously Governor of the Bank of England and the Bank of Canada, he is now UN Special Envoy for Climate Action, UK government’s climate-finance advisor, and Vice Chairman of Brookfield Asset Management.

Mark runs miles before the rest of us have had our first espresso. He sings, writes a best-selling book – Value(s)  - cooks for his four children and is a master of the technique for gr...

Having read Afua Hirsch’s political memoir Brit(ish), I was both moved and informed. So I asked her if we might have a conversation for River Cafe Table 4. 

Anyone who’s watched her documentaries, read her articles, or participated in her grassroots organising, knows that Afua’s insights on racism, inclusion, and British history is radical, brave and brilliant.

Before going into the restaurant for lunch together, we will talk a...

Often when you meet someone in a foreign country there is immediate friendship.

Erdem, the designer of beautiful clothes, and his husband, Philip Joseph, and I were in Mexico City in 2019 staying in the same hotel.

They were days of discoveries, searching for the perfect Tequila, walking miles to Niddo - our favourite breakfast spot - eating every tortilla, tacho and tamale we could find.  

A friendship that began on vacation has f...

There is no such thing as a simple phone call with my beautiful friend Christiane Amanpour. Asking, as I did yesterday, where she’s been she answers “Ukraine”, asking where she is going, she says, “Afghanistan”.

This is what it is like having a fearless friend you love, who puts herself in danger, reporting facts, holding people to account, and telling the truth from wherever she is and whoever she is talking to. 

Christiane goes o...

There are actors who write, producers who direct and cooks who campaign for social change. Stanley Tucci does all of these. 

He writes cook books, creates and hosts a beautiful TV series about Italy, and acts and directs movies that touch us all.

On episode 33 we talk about all this and more. Listen wherever you get your podcasts.

For more than 30 years The River Cafe in London, has been the home-from-home of artists, architects, d...

A few months ago, I walked into a very busy River Café lunch to be greeted by a buzz from the young waiters and chefs working here. They were incredibly excited – “Ruthie, Ruthie” they said, “Rag’n’Bone Man is on Table 4, why don’t you ask him to be on your podcast”. I personally have a rule not to interrupt anyone’s lunch, much less Britain’s most successful and brilliant blues singer, but this time I broke that rule. And here we ...

Duro Olowu is a man of many parts. Fashion designer, art director, mentor to young entrepreneurs, and a passionate lover of food. 

Whenever he calls me, I never know if he is on his way to show his collection in Paris, curate an exhibition in Chicago, visit a wool factory in Tuscany, or just sitting down to have a plate of spaghetti bottarga in The River Cafe. Today I know where he is - with me on episode 32 of River Cafe Table 4. ...

Say the name Bob Iger, former CEO of Disney and Chairman of the Board, and everyone will think of the man that acquired Pixar, Lucas Films, and Marvel. I think of my good friend who cares passionately about what he feeds his children, his grandchildren and the people that work with him.

For more than 30 years The River Cafe in London, has been the home-from-home of artists, architects, designers, actors, collectors, writers, acti...

I will tell you something about Stella McCartney. Stella is a fashion designer with ethics, a spokesperson for sustainability, a supporter of young designers, and entrepreneur who takes on risks for a cause. On our 30th episode of River Cafe Table 4, Stella and Ruthie talk about food and memories of childhood, ethical eating, cooking and more.

For more than 30 years The River Cafe in London, has been the home-from-home of artists, ...

Iwan Wirth - Swiss gallerist and co-founder of Hauser and Wirth - and Ruthie Rogers met through a mutual admiration and love for the artist Philip Guston.

On episode 29 of River Cafe Table 4, he and Ruthie discuss what it’s like to have 15 galleries four restaurants, two farms, three hotels, and large family to cook for.

For more than 30 years The River Cafe in London, has been the home-from-home of artists, architects, designers, ac...