‘Waiter!’ The Art of Service, Soho Literary Festival

As part of this year's Soho Litearay festival, ‘Waiter!’ The Art of Service brings together Michelin-starred chef Michel Roux Jr, Polpo maestro Russell Norman and author Imogen Edwards-Jones to debate this essential element of good dining – and perhaps why Britain is not traditionally renowned for it…

For a culture obsessed with propriety and politeness Britain suffers from the stereotype of below par service. As chef and proprietor of iconic Soho restaurant Le Gavroche, Michel Roux shared his industry expertise in the television programme Service, in which he trained aspiring restauranteurs in this most delicate art. Imogen Edwards-Jones penned an exposés bubbling with insider observations from front-of-house life, in Restaurant Babylon -- part of the Babylon series which went on to be adapted into the BBC series Hotel Babylon. Russell Norman set up the Polpo Empire and was the focus of BBC two programme The Restaurant Man, which shed light on the complex process of establishing a successful eatery. As these three will argue, fine dining and delightful suppers are down to much more than food. The discussion is chaired by James Pembroke, whose book Growing Up in Restaurants, combines his own broad experience in the foodie world with an overview of gastronomic history.

This promises to be an amusing and informative examination of that in effable element that makes dining fine.