Sitting here in The River Café on a sunny Monday morning with chefs in the kitchen making ravioli with girolles, and waiters laying tables in the garden, the uncertain world we live in feels miles away.

The artist and filmmaker Steve McQueen does not separate the world of beauty and the world of suffering in any of his work. Political oppression, slavery, sexual inequality.

Steve and I met in 1999 when he won the Turner Prize for his radical video art, and we once had dinner together with President Obama.

It was clear that the only person President Obama was interested in talking to was Steve McQueen and he didn’t want to share him with anyone else. Now, a few years later, I finally have Steve McQueen all to myself, and being a generous person, will share him with you.

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 Ruthie’s 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.

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