dinner. a time for family. a time for friends. a time for everyone to gather around no matter what—good day or bad—and share. whether you have time to cook for one, for two, for three, or for more. whether you call takeout or delivery, or whether you get dressed up and go out—dinner time is a sacred time.
if you’re a regular around here, you know i have a passion for food. and for cocktails. and for family. the combination of all three is essential to who i am. they’re all passions of mine.
pants | similar shell | similar jacket | bracelet | similar shoes | similar handbag
and in this day and age, it’s a cliche, but to combine all three around the dinner table—it’s hard. i know. our lives pull in all directions: up. down. left. right. this way and that. sometimes it feels darn near impossible to make time—time for the things and the people we love.
it’s important—more than important—to carve out time a few times a week and reach out to those that matter most. it could be a friend you haven’t spoken to in months or family member that you have—doesn’t matter. reach out and invite them to dinner.
order a drink. and then an appetizer. and then an entree. after you’ve eaten your fill, talk. talk and connect. or reconnect. whatever you need to do. do it. whoever it is; whatever the story, use dinner as an excuse to talk about the little and the big things.
use it as an excuse to…
tonight, we’re going out to dinner. the three of us: my oldest and his wife and myself. we’re going for prime rib. (and the appropriate sides.) and, of course, we’re going in style.
because it’s only wednesday—not the weekend i’m going chic, no doubt, but slightly subdued. the outfit i’ve chosen is perfect for any (semi-)formal occasion.
let’s start with the classics: a pair of black slacks that fit like a glove from Kobi Halperin. they’re a staple in any closet. they pair with anything. and i mean anything. dress them down or up. tonight, i’ve paired them with pattern—a beautiful black checkered sleeveless shell from Ann Taylor (old, similar here). many of you might remember this tweed jacket from Talbots seen here and here. and sooo many of you asked about this suede handbag last seen here and here. good news! there’s a current rendition of both the handbag and jacket available. so get excited!
but any colored pattern will do: the slacks serve as your foundation—your accouterments if you will—and the patterned sweater—or blouse or shirt—you can think of it as your main course. splurge.
all right, gang. i want to hear from you. tell me about your last dinner out—or in. who was there? what did you make? or what did you order? did you have an opportunity to connect? or reconnect? or something in between. recipes or stories. i want to hear it all in the comments below.
About The Author
We often like beginning with appetizers at our home, then walking to dinner at a nearby restaurant – just did so last week with friends here in Virginia, and have plans for the same when we’re back in our home in Aix en Provence. At home we know it’ll be quiet, and we can get a good start on catching up with each other before we head for a restaurant where, here in the US particularly, it can be difficult to hear each other! Enjoy your evening out!
Love the original shoes! What brand were they?
Ah, date night with your kiddos. Keep carrying on, Beth.
We meet my husbands golf group and wives for dinner last Saturday night. I had sea bass on a bed of crab and tomato, it was delish!
Love you outfit, black and white is one of favorites!
Nothing better than dinner with the kiddos!!
I live in black and white w/ pops of color and own the Talbot’s jacket, too.
I love seeing what you and others do w/ similar items in my closets.
Enjoy dinner!!
(I agree: food, cocktails, family and friends = perfect combination!:)
What a great looking combination! I love the fact that you are using items already in your closet and then also finding items that are very similar! Perfect for a “nice” evening out! You look spectacular Beth!!!
Beth:
Your column today really struck a cord with me. I joined some close friends for an alfresco Rib Dinner. I’m always charged with dessert, so going with a “Southern” theme (even though this was in Northern CA) I made my Mother’s Banana Pudding. I hadn’t made it in ages and brought back many fond memories of her Southern cooking. Plus, I was able to introduce friends to a “new” dessert. Your column has also prompted me to invite some friends over for a Autumn dinner of beef stew! Thank you!!
Hi Beth, it is very important to take the time for family and friends I agree. We meet our friends every Wednesday for a curry at our favourite Indian restaurant. The couple that run the restaurant come from India so cook authentic Indian cuisine and we enjoy it every week.
Xoxo
Love this outfit. Very classy and classic
I’m in classic black pants now, with a University branded t-shirt. I work here, it is undergrad move-in day, and I volunteered for one of the dorm check-in desks this morning. Always so much fun.
Tonight we are off out with friends of ours. He and my hubby have been friends since high school. We’re having dinner at our local Afghani restaurant, delicious. Meat-on-a-stick-cooked-over-fire, how can you go wrong? And Kadu, the most delicious pumpkin dish anywhere. I’ll be sticking with the black pants but changing my t-shirt to something a little more stylish.
Nothing beats a Chanel type jacket! They never go out of style and go with everything, including denim. Your look is lovely! When my daughter comes down, we always do a late lunch out of appetizers with a glass of wine and we catch up on all our news. We try to do this once a month.
My husband and I have a regular date night, Saturday night, and usually go out to dinner. Not always to a dressy place and most frequently to our local diner, but we build a few splurges into our annual entertainment budget.
Dear Beth,
Am applauding and cheering you on for your daily web postings. I enjoy reading them everyday. Realize that it must be a challenge to pull the outfits together and to then write the posts. My thoughts & prayers are with you & your family!
I love the updates to the website that you and junior Mr. Style have made! It looks great. Still sad for you and your family. Hope you’re all doing well. I appreciate your gusto to keep providing posts on a near daily basis. I’m always happy to see the latest post in my inbox. Take care!
Beth,
Love the tweak to your logo and that your posts are a little more personal, adding topics for “discussion”. Not surprisingly you have followers all over the world, and their comments on the discussion reflect that. So cool!
I have a very similar Talbots jacket, navy tweed, but mine doesn’t fit me nearly as nicely as yours fits you. I wish I knew what I’m doing wrong.
Don’t get to host dinner as often as I used to, because we are back and forth between TN and FL so often, but our best buddies are headed to visit us here in FL for a few days so there are home cooked dinners and great restaurant dining (well, likely a few cocktails, too) in the very near future. Can’t wait! Thank you for continuing to inspire and encourage us!