A while back I heard about an underground group called the Silverlake Supper Club and managed to get on its email list. Every couple of months, I received an email with a date and a dinner invitation, but never replied in time to make the cut. Finally, a few weeks ago, I happened to be sitting at my computer when the invitation arrived. I immediately hit "reply" and RSVPed for myself and a friend. A day later, I got the email: "Thanks to all of you for your speedy RSVPs for the dinner on 8/9. You beat everyone else to the punch!" SUCCESS!
The Silverlake Supper Club is organized by a food-loving woman who enjoys bringing strangers together for a home cooked meal. The attendees do not find out about the location until the day of the dinner, and are required to bring $60 and a bottle of wine to share. For Saturday's dinner, which had a vegetarian theme, the place was a gorgeous, Schindler-designed house up in the hills of Silverlake. We arrived to find a beautifully set table, a bartender pouring cocktails and wine and a group of foodies who, like us, were buzzing with excitement at the prospect of a fun evening.
The setting was spectacular, as was the view. The person who allowed the club to use his home for the dinner had only been to one other secret supper, and was impressed enough to offer his digs for this occasion. It was all very elegant; everyone was dressed nicely and brought good wine. The attendees were nice, intelligent and the conversation flowed along with the wine.
While we mingled with drinks in hand, a waitress came out with a plate of mushroom bruschetta. These were excellent: A soft brioche (I think) topped with a mixture of saucy mushrooms with a touch of sage. They were hearty and really showcased the fresh and woodsy flavor of the mushrooms. The platters kept coming out and we all got several of these delicious morsels.
The sit-down dinner started with a soup of black basil and I think artichokes? I can't recall, but this, too was very good. The hostess/cook explained that she is a believer in the Slow Food movement and pointed out that most of the ingredients used in this dinner are locally sourced, including what was in the soup. Delicious and eco-friendly!
The main meal was served family style and included these braised leeks with a hint of lemon and mustard seed...
...a cabbage, corn and bell pepper salad, which was lightly dressed with a hint of lemon and olive oil...
...a watermelon, olive and feta salad, artfully served in cored watermelons...
...and baked squash, which was stuffed with a cheesy, bread-crumby filling. I have to admit that I was slightly disappointed with the main courses. The cabbage salad was good, the squash had great flavor, but the leeks were just OK and the watermelon salad was my least favorite (but I don't like olives, so that might have a lot to do with it). While I think this was a good use of local ingredients, I think they could have been used in a more creative fashion. I'm a meat eater, but do not mind eating vegetarian as long as it's something more interesting than a series of salads.
But the incredible coconut cake dessert made up for the main courses - it was creamy and dense and so good that I actually had seconds (!!). I especially loved the fresh coconut on top, which is so much better than that sugar-coated coconut from the grocery store. I loved this cake.
Though some of the dishes were a bit lackluster, I think the point of the supper club is to bring people together to share in a fun evening and maybe even learn a thing or two about food. I think it's safe to say that everyone had a great time, including me, and that we all felt we got a good deal for the money. The hostess worked very hard to create this lovely evening, and I met a lot of cool people, like Noah (posing with the amazing cake!) and Ellen and Angela and Raif, among others. I am looking forward to the next supper!
