A Chichester caterer on the most important thing about entertaining and why there’s nothing worse than a tense host | Vicky Meets

​How long have you been in catering? I have been in catering for as long as I can remember. I started in London restaurants and then went into event catering. When we moved to Chichester I started doing parties, weddings and functions here, while still catering for corporate clients in London.

​I was looking for a space to do something a bit different in. When I walked in here I could see that it would work as a flexible space.

The idea was to have the catering kitchen on the ground floor and then to use the upstairs as a space for private events, supper clubs, wakes, meetings and photographic shoots.

Supper Club was born out of a lockdown project, I believe. Will you tell me more? Like many caterers during lockdown I had to find other ways to keep going. I came up with the Friday Night Feast. People ordered a full meal, complete with sides, and I’d drive around and deliver it. It was very hard work and quite stressful, and I had to rope in members of the family to help me deliver. But it went really well.

Now Supper Club is held here in the studio. Our first supper was a fundraiser for Children on the Edge. It was a catalyst for the Supper Club, which is really lovely. I’d like for this to be known as foodie hub that also supports local charities.

How do people discover Supper Club? The date is advertised on the Facebook page and the menu listed. If people like it, they message me. I like cooking dishes from around the world as authentically as possible. Sometimes I offer a vote on the Facebook page so people can get involved in choosing the menu. The Moroccan and Pan-Asian suppers have been especially popular. In the future it might be fun to dress the room with themed supper clubs.

We seat a maximum of 20 people and I take care to arrange the seating plan, hopefully putting people next to others they will enjoy chatting to.

A friend also gave me an idea that I hope to develop, which is to host some sort of singles dinner, so that people who appreciate food can make new friends in a relaxed surrounding instead of having to do the online thing.

What’s your advice to wannabe dinner hosts? The most important thing about entertaining is to be present, happy and welcoming. Food is really important, but there’s nothing worse than a tense host.

People want to enjoy your company, not watch you getting stressed. Preparation is really key, so do something slow-cooked or something that can easily be re-heated. Otherwise get a take-away in or book everyone in to supper club!

Where can we find you and find out more? We’re at the back of the New Park Road carpark, between the back doors of Masala City and Lemongrass. Our Facebook page is @newparkstudio and our new website is www.greenandgraham.com

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