Today’s food scene can be a very earnest and deadly serious place, where having dinner is to be experienced with the utmost sincerity and critique. But London duo Mam Sham are bringing the fun back to enjoying a very decent meal. Combining some of the city’s finest comedians with its most exciting restaurants and chefs, Maria Georgiou and Rhiannon Butler curate vibrant events where you’ll fill your belly and laugh it silly.

The duo’s next acclaimed Supper Club takes place at HERE at Outernet, featuring stand-up sets by Ed Gamble, Rose Matafeo and Crybabies and dishes inspired by each performance created by F.K.A.B.A.M, Ling Ling’s x Mambow, and Supa Ya Ramen. What’s more, all the profits from the event are going to Choose Love, helping refugees and displaced people worldwide. In anticipation of the event, Mam Sham put pen to paper and devised their guide to a perfect dinner party. Read it all below – FYI, it involves PVC, slow-cooked meats and your kitchen.

Ideal dinner party venue:
“Your kitchen, you will always find us in the kitchen at parties. If you’re outsourcing, look for the ménage à trois of any good space – light, sound, warmth. Is it Soviet-style strip lighting? Does your voice echo back to you? Are you regretting wearing spaghetti straps? It’s simple, but give yourselves the basics and dress it up to your style. Also, famously, the party is always wherever a good crowd is. If your guestlist is good, you’re golden.”

Ideal dinner party playlist:
“Something that makes you feel a little bit fun, but maybe a little bit sexy. We actually have the perfect solution. Every month we have a show on Foundation FM, and from this, we have accumulated a playlist with over 53 hours of tracks we love from disco, R&B, soul and more. If you go through the whole track listing in one party, congratulations, but please, go to bed.”

Ideal dinner party entertainment:
“At our Supper Clubs, we have different comedy acts inspiring the courses. This might not be feasible for a dinner party at home BUT give the people what they want, read the room. We’re a sucker for a card game – they’re classic, they’re solid, most people know the rules. Recently we did an event abroad with six different comedians and ended up playing a lot of the card game ‘Mafia’.”

Ideal dinner party menu:
“The best favour you can do yourself is create a menu that doesn’t require cooking lots of things last minute. Slow-cooked meats are fantastic as you can grab them out of the oven whenever your guests are ready to eat and it will be hot and perfect every time. Also, garnishing is a great way to elevate a dish – throw some crispy onions and pickled chilli on top, or roast a lamb, chuck on a load of mixed leafy herbs, tarragon, dill, basil and parsley, add some roasted lemon halves and you’re laughing. You also don’t have to stick to one cuisine throughout the meal. As long as you can tie everything together with a couple of spices or herbs, you can get as creative as you like. Desserts can be tricky, so if they’re not your thing, don’t stress about it. Buy something ready-made from the shops or top your favourite ice cream with some roasted nuts and maraschino cherries.”

Ideal dinner party drink:
“If you’re cooking, someone better be bringing a couple of bottles… right?! It’s always easy to have some pre-batched cocktails in the fridge so you can just add ice and pour. Or EVEN easier, buy some pre-made cocktails from Black Lines and jobs a gooden.”

Ideal dinner party hosting outfit:
“Head-to-toe PVC so you can wipe clean.”

Mam Sham’s next Supper Club takes place on Thursday 18th January – all profits from the event will be donated to charity Choose Love, and tickets are available to purchase from £53 via mamsham.com. A second release will be coming out on 10th January.