Dining in an old London tube car
The subway It is part of the daily life of millions of citizens in London who take it to go to work, to meet their friends or to go to dine at trendy restaurant , but what perhaps many do not imagine is that a subway car can become the destination itself, a place where you can enjoy a tasting menu with a white tablecloth and by candlelight.
Julie is one of the 17 diners who occupies one of the seats; as she settles in points to a subway map , which is on one of the walls, and she explains that she took the Victoria line to get to dinner tonight, which is being held in an old subway car and that precisely ran the Victoria line in the 60s. The dinner, however, will not take place underground but in the grounds of the Walthamstow Pumphouse Museum, in northeast London.
Beatriz Maldonado, the creator of the underground menus
The 'passengers' will enjoy a six-course tasting menu prepared by the Colombian chef Beatriz Maldonado And it changes every two months. It is a culinary experience that offers Supperclub Tube from Thursday to Saturday and costs between 49 and 55 pounds per person (54-60 euros).
“The underground in London is part of people's daily lives, but at the same time this experience is not usually a positive one. So for us it is a bit like changing the face of what it can be like to ride the subway. It is very nice to see the expression of people when they arrive and see the site ”, explains Beatrice.
The typical sound of closing doors, the rush of people not to miss the subway and the classic mind the gap heard over loudspeakers are replaced by jazz music, dim lighting, white-clothed tables, and a welcome drink of choice between Negroni or prosecco.
The service does not start until all the guests have arrived. , who have the reservation at the same time, 7:00 p.m. The Colombian chef explains that “it is more of a social event than going to eat at a restaurant. We serve as if it were a big dinner, although now due to Covid-19, it is more complicated because people have to be further apart”.
Dinner in an old London Underground car
GASTRONOMIC JOURNEY TO LATIN AMERICA
The Supperclub Tube menu is a fusion of gastronomy from different Latin American countries , based on the experience of Beatriz, who has worked in the kitchens of restaurants in Argentina, Chile, Colombia and the United Kingdom.
The menu that Julie and the rest of the 'passengers' are going to try tonight "is a collection of things that I like", reveals Beatriz with a big smile. Your favorite recipes and ingredients They are the common thread of this gastronomic journey.
The first stop takes us to Peru with a lima bean puree, roasted eggplants and a Peruvian herb called huacatay , which tastes similar to mint.
The second dish that arrives at the table is a tomato broth with cassava gnocchi , which shows the Italian influence in Argentine gastronomy. "I discovered that in the north of Argentina, they make cassava gnocchi instead of potato," says the Colombian chef, who remembers that when she lived in Buenos Aires she used to eat gnocchi with tomato on the 29th of each month to have good fortune.
The Supperclub Tube menu is a trip through Argentina, Peru, Colombia...
The journey continues through the American continent with a trout toast in which Beatriz fuses three cuisines : “the tostada is very typical Mexican, the tamarillo sauce is Ecuadorian and the way I make ceviche is Peruvian”.
The fourth course transports diners to Mexico with a quick stop in Italy. “ I love carnitas , it's my favorite taco filling but I didn't want to put tacos on the menu and I thought about the Rice croquettes , a kind of arancini without the cover. It is plain rice stuffed with carnitas that accompanies a pork loin fillet, which we roast and marinate with orange, cinnamon and cumin, the same ingredients with which we make carnitas,” explains Beatriz.
Julie, a French woman who has lived in London for five years, finds it a unique experience to enjoy Latin American food in such a British place. “It's a bit unexpected to eat Latin American food in a wagon. You feel a great contrast while at the same time it is an immersive experience . It makes you change the perspective that one has of the subway”.
The gastronomic journey has not ended here because the pre-dessert, a lemon granita with ginger and jamaica flower , and the culinary closure that Beatriz has called "My favorite things" . A selection of desserts consisting of A chocolate cake , which she prepares following the same recipe used by the nuns at her school in Colombia. “My first cooking class was when I was 9 years old and I learned how to make this cake there. It brings back all those good memories from when I was a child,” says the chef.
It accompanies the cake a Colombian coffee mousse and some dulce de leche wontons . “They are very common in Peruvian cuisine because of the Asian influence they have. It's like a little piece of heaven." And finally, she adds a cape gooseberry and orange compote. “Here the cape gooseberry is used in cocktails, while in Colombia it is everywhere. Cape gooseberry jam is very common for breakfast . The fruit has a flavor that reminds me of flavors from my grandmother's house."
mike and vicky They have spent much of the night documenting the evening with photos and videos of all the dishes. “I heard about this place and when I saw it on the internet I told myself that I had to come, so with the excuse of my girlfriend's birthday, I booked it”, explains Mike who gave his partner this experience for his birthday in April but the pandemic meant that they had to delay it for a few months. Vicky is delighted with the gift and adds that “in London there are many fine dining restaurants, but this one is undoubtedly special and different”.
The Supperclub Tube menu is a trip through Argentina, Peru, Colombia...
After dinner, the diners start to leave and walk towards the subway to go home. The lights of the old car go out and the doors of the cabin are closed until the next day , when new "passengers" will arrive to enjoy the gastronomic journey to Latin American cuisine that Beatriz and her team have prepared in one of the most London settings one can imagine.