Owners/chefs Rose Gray & Ruth Rogers

Rose's background is in art, and ran the kitchen at Neil's Club in New York. The River Café came about through architect Richard Rogers, with whom she was at art school in Guildford. Neither she, nor his American wife, Ruth Rogers had any formal cooking training. Career : The partnership of Ruth Rogers and Rose Gray has gone from strength to strength since they set up the River Café in 1987. Along the way, they have welcomed celebrities on both sides of the kitchen door. Ruth and Rose opened the River Café in collaboration with Richard Rogers' (Ruth's husband) architecture firm. It soon became a big hit, attracting food lovers from across London. Their aim was to provide a little piece of stylish Italy on the banks of the Thames. The restaurant has become famous and its reputation brings in equally well-known diners. It has spawned several books of the River Café recipes from the menu, plus a cookery school. Ruth and Rose have also brought their love of Italian cuisine to TV and it was during the making of one programme that Jamie Oliver was discovered working in the kitchen. Another famous ex-member of the River Café staff is Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall. While it has never sought accolades, it has held a Michelin star since 1998. Gray & Rogers have written an impressive line of cookbooks & their first, Italian Country Cookbook, became an instant bestseller winning both the Glenfiddich Food Book of the Year & the BCA Illustrated Book of the Year Award. Together they have made the River Café one of the most respected restaurants in the world and have trained many of the new generation of star chefs, from Samuel and Samantha Clark to Jamie Oliver.