Darling, I’m taking you for a romantic meal... at Waitrose

THE prospect of a romantic meal at the local supermarket is unlikely to set many couples’ pulses racing.

But Waitrose is hoping to transform the supermarket cafeteria’s cheap and cheerful image by launching a £35-ahead supper club.

Soothed by ambient music and intimate lighting, diners will select from a three-course menu that includes shaved cauliflower with maple seed granola, salmon with brown butter and a chocolate pavé.

The concept will be trialled on eight evenings over the next two months at Waitrose’s new store in Haywards Heath, West Sussex, with meals created by chefs from the supermarket’s three cookery schools.

Waitrose wants to redefine the supermarket and has already opened a number of wine bars and sushi concessions.

Next on the agenda is a fine dining experience similar to that offered by a good quality independent restaurant.

Tables will be laid out for couples and larger groups at the store’s mezzanine-level cafe, which seats up to 50 people.

Other menu options include an ‘edible garden’ of mustard seed pickled radishes, carrot yoghurt and watercress, and roast chicken served with asparagus and Madeira sauce.

The £35 per head charge covers an unspecified ‘selection of drinks and nibbles’, which is thought to include wine.

Waitrose Cookery Schools manager Karen Himsworth said: ‘We realise a supermarket might not spring to mind when people are thinking about dining out in the evening, but we want that to change.

‘We want to make our stores a food destination in the evenings as well as in the day.’

If the eight evenings at Haywards Heath prove a success, Waitrose hopes to expand the supper clubs to other branches across the country.