Recipes And Stars

 Chat about food is always interesting. Ruth Rodgers, London's American born proprietor knows this and has started a podcast that has celebrity stories and recipes.

Mark Landler, the London bureau editor for The New York Times interviewed her in  yesterday's New York Times Food section. The River Cafe is one of London's most glamorous Italian restaurants, starting out as a canteen for Ms. Rogers architect husband richard Rogers. Its' varied and chic plates have attracted all sorts of celebrities. Michael Caine, the cockney charmer from Alfie and The Man Who Would Be King is a Wednesday regular and also the first star  to be interviewed. Other stars and celebs are David Beckham, Paul McCartney, al Gore, Glenn Close, Tracey Ullman and Salmon Rushdie.She's also interviewed Pete Davidson from Saturday Night Live and the great actor Ralph Fiennes. The chats are entertaining. Paul McCartney told of the first time he and John Lennon drank wine and how it reminded him of vinegar. He and his daughter, designer Stella McCartney have cooked on the podcast.

The idea for all of this came from Brooklyn pizzeria the famed  Roberta's. Ms. Rogers visited the hipster hangout known for their unusual pizza toppings.They also had a radio station in their back yard. Another spark came from Ian McKellan who read her riboletta recipe at a fundraiser in 2009. She realized that food and recipes could be drama. Each episode of River Cafe Table 4 (the most popular table in the restaurant) starts with a recipe reading. Mr. Mccartney did one for roasted eggplant, David Beckham read tagliatelle with girolles or small mushrooms while PBS  host Christiane Amanpour read one for the cocktail Negroni Caldo. She asks about childhoods along with health,work and success. Their careers are never mentioned or promotions for their newest movies or albums,. Some are cozy reminisces while another provide to be stark as artist Tracy Emin talked about life with a single mother.

There's nothing like food and talking about food is even better. Ruth Rogers podcasts provide an interesting slice of .life among celebrities. Listen to it for entertaining stories and recipes.