Desert Island Dishes

Food #51

What would you choose as your last meal? Chef Margie Nomura talks to a special guest about the seven dishes that have shaped their lives.In this podcast you will find conversations with interesting people from the world of food and beyond uncovering the seminal dishes and experiences that have shaped who they are today. We will find out about their favourite childhood dishes, the dishes they eat the most often, and the dishes that mean the most to them. And of course we will also discover what their last dish would be before being cast off to the desert island.

S18 Ep8: Asma Khan on her unstoppable quest for social change in the food industry.
Apr 10, 2025 – 51:01
S18 Ep7: Nicola Lamb the beloved pastry chef on turning her passion into a career
Apr 3, 2025 – 54:43
S18 Ep6: Martha Swales the Gardening Guru on the dishes that have shaped her
Mar 27, 2025 – 49:28
S18 Ep5: Natalia Rudin, the social media sensation Nats Nourishments on the dishes that have shaped her
Mar 20, 2025 – 43:23
S18 Ep4: Gordon Ramsay: One of the World's Greatest Chefs on the dishes that have shaped him
Feb 25, 2025 – 42:11
S18 Ep3: José Pizarro
Feb 11, 2025 – 35:54
S18 Ep2: Ferne McCann, TV presenter and reality TV star on the dishes that have shaped her
Feb 4, 2025 – 52:54
S18 Ep1: Gwyneth Paltrow, Oscar winning actress and founder of Goop on the dishes that have shaped her life
Jan 28, 2025 – 47:45
S16 Ep9: Superstar chef Nuno Mendes on the dishes that have shaped his life, his greatest success and the best dish he'd ever eaten
Dec 12, 2024 – 47:36
Side Dish: The Dream Dinner Party with Georgina Hayden (mini episode)
Nov 28, 2024 – 28:35
S16 Ep8: Manon La Greve on how The Great British Bake Off Changed her life, turning failure into a positive and
Nov 26, 2024 – 42:45
Side Dish: The Dream Dinner Party with Melissa Hemsley (mini episode)
Nov 21, 2024 – 25:25
S16 Ep7: Sarah Ferguson, The Duchess of York on the dishes that have shaped her life
Nov 19, 2024 – 43:32
Side Dish: The Dream Dinner Party with Eleanor Wilkinson (mini episode)
Nov 14, 2024 – 18:56
S16 Ep6: Melissa Thompson: award winning writer and chef on the dishes that have shaped her life
Nov 12, 2024 – 50:28
Side Dish: The Dream Dinner Party with Matt Adlard (mini episode)
Nov 7, 2024 – 20:35
S16 Ep5: Marco Pierre White: The original rock and roll chef
Nov 5, 2024 – 38:26
Side Dish: The Dream Dinner Party with Ed Smith (mini episode)
Oct 30, 2024 – 21:59
S16 Ep4: Eleanor Wilkinson on the joy of cooking for one, how one podcast changed her life and the dishes that have shaped her life
Oct 29, 2024 – 46:45
Side Dish: The Dream Dinner Party with Gizzi Erskine (mini episode)
Oct 24, 2024 – 25:19
S16 Ep3: Matt Adlard the self taught pastry chef and former Topless Baker on the best dosh he's ever eaten and the dishes that have shaped his life
Oct 22, 2024 – 55:40
Side Dish: The Dream Dinner Party with Clare Smyth (mini episode)
Oct 17, 2024 – 17:06
S16 Ep2: Ruby Wax on her life, career, comedy and the dishes that have shaped her life
Oct 15, 2024 – 36:39
Side Dish: The Dream Dinner Party with Dawn O'Porter (mini episode)
Oct 10, 2024 – 28:39
S16 Ep1: Clare Smyth, the first and only female British chef to be awarded 3 Michelin stars on the dishes that have shaped her life
Oct 8, 2024 – 43:01
S15 Ep4: Karan Gokani the founder of Hoppers on his love of Sri Lanka, his passion for cooking and the best dish he's ever eaten
Feb 29, 2024 – 47:15
Side Dish: The Dream Dinner Party with Ravneet Gill (mini episode)
Feb 27, 2024 – 24:47
S15 Ep3: Bee Wilson, food writer and historian on what comfort food means to her, the joy of potatoes and her 7 Desert Island Dishes
Feb 22, 2024 – 43:45
Side Dish: The Dream Dinner Party with Zena Kamgaing (mini episode)
Feb 20, 2024 – 24:03
S15 Ep2: David Loftus the photographer whose work has resulted in more than 30 million book sales on the dishes that have shaped him
Feb 15, 2024 – 01:04:22
Side Dish: The Dream Dinner Party with Rick Stein (mini episode)
Feb 13, 2024 – 18:42
S15 Ep1: Claudia Roden one of the greatest food writers of all time on the dishes that have shaped her
Feb 8, 2024 – 58:07
S14 Ep34: Rick Stein on his accidental journey to become a restaurateur, his enduring love of fish and the best dish he's ever eaten
Nov 16, 2023 – 48:27
Side Dish: The Dream Dinner Party with Donna Hay (mini episode)
Nov 14, 2023 – 19:08
S14 Ep33: Zena Kamgaing on how she's only eaten her favourite sandwich once in the last 10 years, how her cooking has evolved and getting her big break with Jamie Oliver.
Nov 9, 2023 – 50:54
Side Dish: The Dream Dinner Party with Clodagh McKenna (mini episode)
Nov 7, 2023 – 18:47
S14 Ep32: Ed Gamble, comedian, podcaster and now author on his relationship with food, his passion for the cheeseboard and his unusual plan to escape from the island
Nov 2, 2023 – 45:55
BONUS: Rachel Belle from Your Last Meal on her seven Desert Island Dishes
Oct 31, 2023 – 34:27
S14 Ep31: Russell Norman on the first time he fell in love with Venice and why ugly food is always the most delicious
Oct 26, 2023 – 53:30
Side Dish: The Dream Dinner Party with Donal Skehan (mini episode)
Oct 24, 2023 – 32:21
S14 Ep30: Sarah Wilson on building (and ultimately giving away) her I Quit Sugar empire and the dishes that have shaped her life
Oct 19, 2023 – 52:06
Side Dish: The Dream Dinner Party with Madeleine Shaw (mini episode)
Oct 17, 2023 – 21:46
S14 Ep29: Jon Watts, chef and cookbook author on discovering his passion for food and how he completely turned his life around
Oct 12, 2023 – 46:32
Side Dish: The Dream Dinner Party with Matt Rodbard (mini episode)
Oct 10, 2023 – 35:54
S14 Ep28: Tara Wigley, cook and in-house writer for Team Ottolenghi and author of the non recipe recipe book How to Butter Toast
Oct 5, 2023 – 47:06
Side Dish: The Dream Dinner Party with Skye McAlpine (mini episode)
Oct 3, 2023 – 29:06
S14 Ep27: Chef Thom Bateman on the highs and lows of getting to where he is today and why food has always been at the heart of it
Sep 28, 2023 – 55:43
Side Dish: The Dream Dinner Party with Poppy O'Toole (mini episode)
Sep 26, 2023 – 14:08
S14 Ep26: Jane Dunn aka Jane’s Patisserie reflects on the last few years, her passion for baking and the dishes that have shaped her
Sep 21, 2023 – 46:52
Side Dish: The Dream Dinner Party with Nadiya Hussain (mini episode)
Sep 19, 2023 – 23:28

Recent Reviews

bigdtb

Love this podcast

Margie’s interview style is perfection and I love hearing everyone’s food memories. Has inspired so many conversations around our own dinner table on what are desert island dishes would be. A true treasure!!
Becky - NYC & NC

My favorite podcast!

I wasn't familiar with Margie Nomura, the host/creator, of Desert Island Dishes, until recently. This has quickly become my very favorite podcast. You feel as if you're comfortably sitting at a kitchen table listening to a wonderful chat between friends about food, life and more. Brilliant line-up of guests.
Jen Kay Gee

Great mix of foodie chat and guest origin stories

Love listening to Margie’s calming, almost soporific voice, as she meanders through the 7 weekly food questions via her guest’s backstory. Often heading down interesting tangents, informed by impressive thorough pre-interview research. Great listen.
Victoria Spruiell

Great podcast!

I just discovered this podcast and absolutely love it! I love the conversations you have with your guests and I think the 7 “desert island dishes” is a really cool concept. I hope that you post more episodes!
TrixieandSherman

Delightful and Informative

Margie is a knowledgeable and delightful interviewer. Her podcast is a wonderful mix of food facts and personal profiles. I look forward to new episodes every week. Keep up the good work!
Superstar9999986

Makes me smile

I love this podcast! I listen to it on my walk home, and inspires me to put a little effort into cooking dinner.