Imagine going to a close friend's birthday, months after the death of your son. Imagine realising it was too soon and telling the man you're talking to who you hardly know, why you need to leave. He takes your arm and insists on seeing you to the lift. Then he goes down with you until you get to the street. This becomes a ten minute walk to the car park. A climb up the stairs, him holding your hand tightly until you find your car. Driving off, you see him in the rearview mirror waving...

“Across a garden from where Surgeon General Vivek Murthy and I are sitting, people are having Sunday lunch in The River Cafe. Walking into the room you hear the rise and fall of conversation and laughter, friends and families connecting over food. At age 37 Vivek was appointed as the youngest Surgeon General of the United States by President Obama and is now serving a second term with President Biden. During Covid in his gap between terms as Surgeon General, he might have researched...

The first time that Sarah Jessica Parker and I spoke, the tables were turned. She was on the phone in The River Cafe kitchen, and I was on a beach in Mexico. It was really hard to hear her with the noise of pots and pans, the crashing waves of the Pacific Ocean. But her dazzling warmth travelled the 6000 miles. If the phone connection was poor, the friendship connection was instant.Last month, she was in The River Cafe with her family, and I was there with mine. They were sitting on table...

If you're in politics, being outgoing, engaging and caring is part of the job. And these are the words often used to describe the Governor of New Jersey, Phil Murphy, and first Lady Tammy Murphy. But having been close to Phil and Tammy for as long as I have, I know this is truly who they are. In 2008, Phil was the finance chair for the Democratic National Committee and as Americans abroad, we supported the presidential campaign for Barack Obama. Phil and Tammy worked day and night traveling...

There is a well-known cartoon in The New Yorker magazine depicting President Franklin Delano Roosevelt in his pyjamas, on his knees next to his bed, saying a prayer for his wife, the most active first lady in history. ‘Dear Lord, please make Eleanor tired tomorrow’. I can imagine the friends and family of Stephen Fry saying the same prayer, for there's very little Stephen doesn't do. Actor, comedian, television host, director, a prolific writer with four novels, three autobiographies and...

Fisher Stevens and I were recently brought close together by one of the greatest artists of the 20th century, Philip Guston, and one of the greatest footballers, David Beckham. Last September he was in The River Cafe with the producers of Beckham, the series he directed for Netflix. We agreed to have breakfast at my house and the next morning he arrived.Walking up the stairs, Fischer stopped at the large pink Guston. It was hard to tear him away as he spoke about the painting and what it...

In a profession that is ever changing and always challenging, Eric Ripert is an inspiration. He's been the chef, and co-owner, of New York's legendary Le Bernardin for more than 30 years. He is a mentor to many, and someone who so many chefs look up to.  Today, I'm here in New York with him at his Michelin three-star temple to fish and seafood, talking about us living in different cities, while cooking the food of different countries. But you know what? We're a lot alike: Two chefs with much...

I’ve known Emily Mortimer since she was six. Her parents were close friends—John, a playwright and barrister, and Penny, a fly fisher and tennis player, who managed the no small feat of smoking while playing the game. What Emily does now is impressive—she's an actor, a writer, and director, known for such films as Notting Hill, The Pursuit of Love, Newsroom, Match Point, and Apple TV’s latest, The New Look, with Juliette Binoche. Not that she has only worked onscreen. Emily was one of the...

Restaurateur Danny Meyer opened Union Square Cafe and Gramercy Tavern in New York more than 30 years ago and proved values matter. One could not only treat staff with the respect they deserve, but make customers happy. Happier, as they say, when they leave than when they arrived. Danny then launched Shake Shack in 2001, a hotdog stand in Madison Park. The rest, as they say, is history. Today, when Ruthie has a question about fair policies for the people who work with her or how to think about...

When Ruthie found herself living in Mexico City for four months in 2018, her regular world of London, work, family and friends became irregular. She was thrust into a city with new people, new language and new food. Then one day someone suggested she meet at Niddo, a small restaurant recently opened by Karen Drijanski and her son Eduardo Plaschinski. From that moment her mornings changed. She went to Niddo almost daily, always to be greeted with a strong embrace from Karen, who would go back...

When you ask Guy Ritchie to do a podcast, you don't just get Guy Ritchie the director—you get Guy Ritchie the food lover. Before sitting down with Ruthie, there he was in the garden at The River Cafe, setting up his WildKitchen cooking rig to grill a ribeye steak for all the chefs. He then joined Ruthie to talk wine, creative process, how he measures success, fishing, how he cooks his steaks, and bringing the WildKitchen to his film sets.Ruthie's Table 4 is made in partnership with...

Last Wednesday, 24 hours after being nominated for an Academy Award for Best Actress for her role in ‘Maestro’, Carey Mulligan arrived at The River Cafe. She joined chef Sian Owen in the kitchen to cook scallops, and sat down with Ruthie to discuss her celebrated career and the foods she loves. Listen to Ruthie’s Table 4: Carey Mulligan in partnership with Moncler.   See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

When Will Ferrell said he'd be my guest on Ruthie's Table 4, I expected some laughs, some great stories, but not ‘Happy Birthday’ in Swedish. Everyone seems to love Will, whether they worked with him or, of course, watched him on screen in those classic comedies, Elf and Anchorman and many more. We do have a mutual friend, Saturday Night Live creator and producer Lorne Michaels, but we first met last spring when I was invited to a lunch. Now, walking into a lunch party late can be...

Today, a Ruthie’s Table 4 first, our first couple interview. Recorded on location in New York, actors Matthew Rhys and Keri Russell join Ruthie to discuss their lives through food. Mathew grew up in Wales eating Cawl and Kerri started her career aged 15 where she had to fend for herself. They now live together with their children in Brooklyn and share a love for sage pasta, travelling through Italy, discovering local restaurants - and most of all a passion for each other.  See...

Mala Goanker, businesswoman, writer and founder of SurgoCap, sits down with Ruthie to discuss her work in public healthcare, growing a farm in Sussex and the science of food in forming memories. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The MoMA is arguably the best museum in the world. Art-historian and director, Glenn Lowry, joins Ruthie to talk about the importance of great food in museums, the recent Ed Ruscha exhibition, and the influence of French cooking on his life. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The Bear is the number 1 hit show of 2023. Writer, producer and show-runner, Joanna Calo, joins Ruthie to discuss creating menus for television, growing up with a communal kitchen and the importance of female representation in kitchens on screen. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Trudie Styler, film producer, actress, activist and farmer, joins Ruthie to talk about their shared connection of the food, wine and history of Tuscany. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Ralph Fiennes, actor, writer, director and one of five children talks to Ruthie about the roles he has played in his long career and the important role food has played in his life. Listen to two good friends talk together. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

After meeting Scott Galloway for lunch a few months ago, Ruthie invited the podcast host, best-selling author and professor of marketing to join her on Table 4. Claiming he had little interest in food, the hour was spent looking at his life through his mother’s cooking, meals with his children, and an experience in The  River Cafe involving the holding of hands. For more information, recipes, and ingredients, go...

Ruthie and J.J Martin, founder of Milanese lifestyle brand La Double J, meet for the first time and immediately discover how much they have in common - most of all a passion and admiration for everything Italian.   If you'd like to send Ruthie a message for the 100th Episode Lister Q&A, send a voice note to: +447983396982 For more information, recipes, and ingredients, go...

Simon Sebag Montefiore is a best-selling, prize-winning author, historian and broadcaster. In this episode, Ruthie talks to him about the food of Georgia, the Montefiore family tree and his most recent book, The World: A Family History of Humanity. If you'd like to send Ruthie a message for the 100th Episode Lister Q&A, send a voice note to: +447983396982 For more information, recipes, and ingredients, go...

Ruthie sat down with Linda Evangelista in New York to discuss growing up in Canada, a shared love of fresh produce, cooking with family and how to prepare the perfect gnocchi. For more information, recipes, and ingredients, go to: Web: https://rivercafe.co.uk/ Instagram: www.instagram.com/ruthiestable4 Facebook: https://en-gb.facebook.com/therivercafelondon/ For any podcast enquires please contact: [email protected] See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

To celebrate the launch of their new book, Ruthie sat down with co-authors Massimo Bottura & Lara Gilmore at Refettorio Felix in London for a special live recording of Ruthie’s Table 4. They discussed their new book Slow Food, Fast Cars, the importance of regionality and seasonality, family traditions, trusting your palate, community kitchens and, amongst other things, a very famous lemon tart. For more information, recipes, and ingredients, go...