Here are some fun facts about the London Underground to impress people with at your next dinner party: only 45 per cent of the London Underground is actually in tunnels; Mark Twain was onboard the Central Line for its inaugural journey and, a decommissioned 1967 London Underground Victoria Line carriage stationed within the grounds of a museum inside an old Victorian pumping station in East London is currently being used as the setting for a gourmet pop-up restaurant called Supperclub Tube Train.
If you’re a Londoner or have ever ridden the London Underground, you’d be forgiven for needing time to get used the idea that people in the above pictures are actually having fun and talking to each other on this particular Tube train, not to mention enjoying a glass of wine or even a bottle. Shock horror!
The pop-up restaurant is run by Colombian head chef, Beatriz Maldonado, who works tirelessly each night in her tiny kitchen in a disused café next to the train to prepare a mouthwatering six-course South American-inspired feast … think blue corn tostada, trout marinated in lime and chilli with tamarillo dressing, Michoacan style pulled pork, tomatillo salsa verde, red cabbage and rice. Heaven!
These lovingly made and beautiful-to-look-at creations are then sent out to her curious diners, who sit patiently at their tables in the carriage decked out in white table cloths and fine silverware, surrounded by other disused relics of London transport on the lot.
This unique pop-up restaurant on the Tube has been running for seven years having started life as a small supper club in a Brixton flat, until its original founders decided to “upgrade” for a slightly more unique setting when they stumbled across a decommissioned 1967 London Underground carriage on a filming location website. This is when the Underground Supper Club was born, with Beatrice taking over in 2018. Here’s a little video to get you in the mood.
They’ve also just announced they’re reopening from 13 August for post-Covid social-distance friendly dining and I’ve heard they book up months ahead.
Find out more and reserve your seats here.
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