Ruthie's Table 4

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 first employees of the River Cafe, back in 1989 when being 17 and totally inexperienced was no obstacle to being a waiter.

Together in The River Cafe today we're going to talk about food, memories and cooking a goose while studying in Russia.

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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 launchedShake Shackin 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 expanding or contractingThe River Cafe, or whether it would be possible to do exchanges with their best chefs, Danny is the person she calls.

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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 to her kitchen and cook the best breakfast: eggs Mexicana, rancheros, tortillas, fresh breads, oatmeal, cheese omelettes, avocado.

Ruthie and Karen kept in touch, but it was only a weeks ago that she returned to Niddo for the first time in four years. And so, here today not from The River Cafe but from a studio in Mexico City, three good friends back in the most beautiful of cities—a warm and irregular world.

Ruthie's Table 4 is made in partnership with Moncler.

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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 Moncler.

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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.

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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, ElfandAnchorman and many more. We do have a mutual friend,Saturday Night Livecreator 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 awkward—conversations stop, chairs are adjusted, introductions made. But there I was, seated next to Will and all was right with the world. He was here in London filmingBarbieand I was just off to New York, but we promised to continue the conversation. And that’s what we’re doing today, on Table 4.

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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.

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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.

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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.

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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.

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