A seat at the table
A humble bowl of rice is bringing Hackney together through the ESEA community centre’s new monthly dinner
The ESEA team and volunteers at Rice & Friends
“Rice & Friends is an evolution of the lunch club we offer,” says community cook and volunteer Jenny Lau, who’s the event organiser and has been volunteering at East and South East Asian (ESEA) community centre for the past six years.
“People tell me they wish they could come to our popular lunch clubs but can’t make it during the day,” she continues.
Following a £2 million investment from Hackney Council to renovate an old bath house on Englefield Road, the former Hackney Chinese Community Services reopened as London’s first dedicated ESEA community centre last year.
It serves as a vital hub for the wider diaspora, offering welfare support and hot lunches, as well as daily activities ranging from kung fu and Mahjong to tai chi and karaoke.
The new, monthly food event is entirely volunteer-run and community-led. As the name suggests, the menu is built around boiled rice and a nourishing bowl of soup.
These are accompanied by three unique dishes prepared by guest chefs, cookbook authors, and friends of the community centre.
The menu is usually a surprise until the week before the event, but the previous lineup featured: Karla Zazueta, Mexican author and cookery teacher; Rojak London, a Singaporean supper club cook; and Erica Ho, chef-founder of Spill, a supper club serving Southeast Asian flavours with a Western twist.
To keep the event accessible and sustainable, the kitchen works with donations and surplus produce from the lunch clubs to ensure zero waste.
Chef Karla explains: “I’ll be cooking frijoles charros, a traditional northern Mexican pinto bean dish that I love preparing for my children.
“Food has a special way of creating connection and comfort. To me, rice means home. It brings people together because it’s simple, comforting and made to be shared with others.”
The event is an open invite to all Hackney residents and beyond.
It’s an informal, multicultural and cross-cultural dinner that encourages people to get to know their neighbours, make new friends, collaborate and engage with their community.
Jenny continues: “Everyone knows that eating out is an expensive affair – it’s a huge investment and many places get booked up.
“I like this idea of it being cheap, something that you eat either on your way home or on your way out, where you can meet up with your friends, catch up and also enjoy what the centre has to offer.”
Tickets are £20, with discounted and accessible pricing available at £16 for students, older people, and residents on low incomes.
To reserve your spot, email: hello@celestialpeach.com