After the second, exhausting day of a three-day  photo-shoot in my home, I ended up this evening, as I did yesterday evening, with a fridge full of freshly-cooked Chinese food: some Hangzhou broad beans with ham, some garlic stems with bacon, Dan Dan noodles, a delicious soup of mustard greens, and five or six other dishes. Frankly, after a day at the stove, I didn't feel like eating any of it, and was too burnt-out to contemplate an impromptu supper party. I also knew that I'd have a whole host of new dishes the following day, so I sent an SOS message to a few friends in the neighbourhood, offering a Chinese takeaway in return for a little light washing up. Within the hour one neighbour had popped in, done the dishes and returned home with several boxes of food. Later, another friend cycled over and relieved me of the rest, leaving me with enough room in the fridge for the remains of the chicken stock and some space in my head. They both seemed very pleased. There are pop-up restaurants and underground supper clubs all over London now: could a pop-up Chinese takeaway be the next hot thing?

The only problem is that now... I'm hungry! I think I'll have some buttered toast with cheese before bed...