Hosting is just part of Ali LaBelle’s personality. As an entrepreneur and creative, she loves everything about the planning process—from the menu to the vibe, right down to the playlist. And now she’s spilling all her secrets.
Tell us a little about yourself and what inspires you to host.
I love to host for a lot of reasons, many of which are just a built-in part of my personality. I'm a total homebody and have made my home a place that I want to hang out in all the time—litearlly, I never want to leave—so inviting people into it brings me a lot of joy. I'm also a total control freak, so being in charge of the evening and making an experience nice for someone comes really naturally to me. And lastly, I do creative work all day through my branding studio, Ali LaBelle Creative, so using my design skills to do something that's purely fun and food-focused is a nice break from what I'm working on for clients.
How would you describe your hosting style? Do you have a particular vibe you like to set?
Most of the neuroticism happens behind the scenes—I want everyone who's over to feel relaxed and taken care of, so I do a lot of prep ahead of time so I'm not chaotically running around while people are there. There's nothing worse than being invited over to someone's house and being like, What am I going to eat? Is it a "shoes on" or "shoes off" house? What time are we eating? So I try to take the panic out of the picture by keeping the vibe kind of lowkey, warm, and unfussy.
What's the first thing you do when you start planning a dinner party? Do you choose the menu or the guest list first?
Typically I invite a group of people over and then decide what we'll eat and what the mood will be based on who's on that list. Most of my friends probably expect me to make pasta (thanks to my side project/alter ego, Pasta Girlfriend) and 9 times out of 10 they'll probably be right.
What’s your party planning “must-have”? Is it a fancy drink menu, decorative touches, or something else?
I really like to think about a dinner party as something that extends beyond the table itself, so my "must have" is probably more like an exercise in imagining what it's like to be at my house from beginning to end. I'll text the group beforehand to let them know they can let themselves in (no awkward standing at the door), I'll make sure there's music playing that fits the mood, and I always light a candle with a warm, leathery scent in the entryway. I have snacks and wine ready to go when people first arrive in case dinner is running a little long—that one's important. And I always turn overhead lighting off and just use tablelamps—it makes everything feel so much more intimate.
Favorite part of hosting – the planning, the cooking, or the conversations?
The nice thing to say would be "the conversations", but honestly, it's the planning! I have a lot of fun thinking through what the table might look like, what vessels I'll serve different dishes in, what wine we'll drink, if there will be a printed menu and what it might look like...
Do you prefer an intimate dinner or a big, lively gathering?
I prefer a smaller guest list, but I did throw myself a big birthday party in January and had a lot of fun packing my house with a lot of friends! The clean up is the worst, though.
What’s your favorite party snack or appetizer?
I made the party mix recipe from the Big Night cookbook for that birthday party and people loved it—I sent the last stragglers home with the leftovers because it was such a hit. For dinners I often will pick up a loaf of focaccia (sometimes I make it, but Bub and Grandma's is hard to beat) and serve it with some lemon butter, good olive oil, or whipped feta. I'll also usually heat up some olives on the stove with orange peels, almonds, garlic, and red pepper flakes—that's a tip from Alice Waters and it's always worth the extra step.
Are there any hosting traditions you have?
Anytime I'm hosting an event, I always either make a brand new playlist or make tweaks to one that already exists. I like to try to make sure the music matches the tone of the night and what I think my guests might enjoy hearing. Some of my favorites are this one I made for a Galentine's Day dinner, this one for aperitivo hour, and this one I played when I took over an entire restaurant in New York for a Pasta Girlfriend event.
What’s the best piece of hosting advice you’ve ever received?
To be clear with what you want people to bring. If you don't have time to stop by the bakery for bread that morning, ask a guest to! Or if you'd rather not handle dessert, assign an ice cream pickup to someone. I prefer people don't go rogue and surprise me with something they've made unless I ask, so being clear up front mitigates that. Usually, though, I'll tell people not to bring anything at all—like I said, I'm a control freak!
Get Ali's Look
Palisades Polished Silver Flatware
