Revel: A Maximalist's Guide to Having People Over [A Hosting Cookbook]

A fresh take on the art of having people over, this modern guide to hosting offers 85 recipes across fifteen distinctive menus from the author of Colombiana.

“A fierce invitation to rethink how to host with love, generosity, and wild amplitude. Revel opened my mind to entertaining any time of day.”—Dana Cowin, founder of Progressive Hedonist and former editor-in-chief of Food & Wine

The art of entertaining starts long before your guests arrive. Revel is chef, food stylist, and housewares designer Mariana Velásquez playbook for setting up a headache-free affair. Her starting place is always the why—why are you inviting people over? This answer becomes your north star, guiding you through planning from what mood you’d like to set to how many people to invite.

Since no gathering is complete without food, Mariana provides fifteen tried-and-true menus for any type of event. Organized by time of day, each menu is accompanied by a detailed plan and set up, where Mariana pulls from her countless hours of hosting experience to suggest her preferred order to buy and prep as well as how she sets up the space to create the tone she envisions for the affair.

You’ll have recipes for Morning Rituals like a Cardamom Labneh with Lemon Verbena Poached Rhubarb for breakfast in bed. A Fragrant Soupy Salmon Rice with Chorizo and Citrus Pork Belly and Radicchio Salad grace the table for a fun pink-hued sit-down lunch fit for Midday Affairs. Maximize the Afternoon Light with the ultimate aperitivo spread filled with your favorite charcuterie and tinned fish alongside Long Seedy Crackers and Orange-Spiced Olives. Settle into your Evening Moves with a twist on a classic roast chicken menu that features a Salt-Roasted Chicken with a luscious Harissa-inspired Salsa Rouge and a Sesame Whiskey Cocktail that kicks off the night.

With 85 delicious and dreamy recipes alongside gorgeous photography by Gentl & Hyers, Revel invites you to enjoy every aspect of throwing a party. Whether you want to follow these menus to a tee or use them as inspiration, Mariana reminds you that hosting can be as extravagant or unfussy as you’d like as long as you are having a fabulous time through it all.

Mariana Velásquez is a trained chef, stylist, designer, and passionate hostess with decades of experience in the realm of food. A tastemaker who explores the juxtaposition of food, fashion, and art, Mariana’s work is an edible canvas where she invites the viewer to eat with their senses. She is the author of Colombiana, which was named one of the best cookbooks of the year by Bon Appetit, Real Simple, and The Los Angeles Times. She started the retail line Casa Velasquez, a brand that ventures into an unexplored consumer category: hostingware. The company is a twofold concept encompassing textiles and stationery for the table as well as fabulous garments for the host, redefining the boundaries of home and fashion. She has been featured in The New York Times, T Magazine, Cherry Bombe, Vogue, InStyle, and more.