Event Guide

A guide to our first Grab A Plate event, including what to bring, what to expect and everything you need to know before you arrive.

THE VENUE

Dream Story
361 Brockley Rd, London SE4 2AG

Based in Brockley, just a short walk from Crofton Park station

There'll be a bar open throughout the evening, so drinks are available to buy whenever you fancy one.

Getting there:

  • By train: Crofton Park station is the closest station, served by Thameslink.

  • By bus: The 122, 171, N171 and 172 stop near Crofton Park station, with the P4 also stopping nearby.

  • The nearest Overground station is Brockley, around a 10–15 minute walk from the venue. If you'd rather take the bus, the 171 or 172 both stop at Crofton Park Station, a short walk from Dream Story.

 

WHAT TO BRING

Bring a homemade dish that feels like summer to you.

For our Endless Summer theme, maybe it's something you ate on holiday, a dish you make every year when the weather gets warm, a BBQ favourite, a picnic classic or simply something that reminds you of long evenings and sunny days.

Sweet or savoury. Big or small. There are no rules.

If you're stuck for ideas, think:

  • A favourite holiday dish

  • Something inspired by a summer abroad

  • A BBQ favourite

  • A picnic classic

  • Something fresh, fruity or herby

  • A recipe that reminds you of summer at home

How much?

Bring enough for everyone to have a small taste. We'll have lots of different dishes on the table, so think sharing rather than a full meal for a crowd.

Please bring your dish ready to serve.

Room temperature dishes are ideal, as we have limited space at the venue for reheating and no food preparation will be taking place on the day.

If your dish really needs to be reheated, just let us know when you submit your dish details so we can plan for it in advance.

FOOD SAFETY + ALLERGIES

Because we're all sharing homemade food, it's important that we know what's in each dish and that everyone takes care when preparing their food.

A few days before the event, we'll ask you to confirm what you're bringing and let us know about any allergens or dietary requirements. We'll use this information to prepare labels for the table, so everyone can make informed choices about what they eat.

Please read our full Food Safety & Allergen Guidance before preparing your dish. It covers everything you need to know about preparing, transporting and serving your food, as well as allergen advice.

When preparing your dish, please check your ingredients for these 14 allergens:

  • celery

  • cereals containing gluten (such as wheat, rye, barley and oats)

  • crustaceans (such as prawns, crabs and lobsters)

  • eggs

  • fish

  • lupin (including lupin seeds and products made from them, like lupin flour)

  • milk

  • molluscs (such as mussels and oysters)

  • mustard

  • nuts, specifically tree nuts (such as almonds, hazelnuts, walnuts, brazil nuts, cashews, pecans, pistachios and macadamia nuts)

  • peanuts

  • sesame

  • soybeans

  • sulphur dioxide and sulphites  (at a concentration of more than ten parts per million)

  • Wash your hands and use clean equipment and surfaces when preparing your food.

  • Keep your dish covered during transport.

  • Keep ingredients and prepared food stored safely.

  • If your dish needs to be kept chilled, let us know when you submit your dish information.

  • Please don't prepare food if you're feeling unwell.

  • Please bring your dish ready to serve wherever possible.

Preparing you dish

On the table

Every dish will have a card showing the dish name and any allergens we've been told it contains.

for example:

LEMON & BLUEBERRY CAKE

Contains: WHEAT • EGGS • MILK

The information on each card will be based on the information provided by the person who made the dish. If you have a food allergy, intolerance or dietary requirement, please always check the dish card before eating and speak to us if you're unsure.

Grab A Plate is a shared homemade food event, so dishes are prepared in people's home kitchens. While we'll provide the allergen information we've been given, we can't guarantee that food is completely free from traces of allergens or cross contamination.

WHAT TO EXPECT

ARRIVE & GET SETTLED

When you arrive, we'll show you where to put your dish and where to get a drink. The bar will be open throughout the event.

There'll be some time at the beginning to have a drink and meet the other guests before we start eating.

MEET SOME PEOPLE

We'll give everyone a chance to mingle before we eat.

If you're coming on your own, don't worry about arriving and having to figure out where to start. We'll help get things going.

GRAB A PLATE

Once everyone has arrived, we'll bring the dishes together and open up the table.

Take a plate, try what you fancy and help yourself throughout the evening. There'll be plenty of different things to try, so you don't need to commit to one dish.

STICK AROUND

We'll wrap things up at 10pm, but until then, there's plenty of time to have another drink, keep chatting and enjoy the evening.

If there's food left at the end, we'll have takeaway containers available so it doesn't go to waste.

COMING ON YOUR OWN?

You won't be the only one. A big part of Grab A Plate is meeting people you wouldn't otherwise have met. So don't worry about needing to know someone before you arrive

We'll help get conversations started at the beginning, then you can settle into the evening from there.

Questions before the event?
Drop us a message at jess@grabaplate.com