Dining With Strangers

"I sometimes think, thank you Mr. Fayed — if it hadn't been for him, I would probably still be boring Mrs. MP." In the 143rd dinner interview, Christine Hamilton talks scandal, bankruptcy, I'm a Celebrity, and contentment after chaos. diningwithstrangers.com/the-dinners/14…

Throwback Thursday 112 (October 2018): "This is why I love standup, it's allowed me to be the most myself I've ever been." – Comedian and former SNL writer Alex English on getting the last laugh diningwithstrangers.com/the-dinners/11…

Throwback Thursday 110 (October 2018): A joke rap video made in college about their gay sex lives went viral. Then best friends Pierre Phipps and Terrance Wilson — aka the Freaky Boiz — turned that moment into a growing brand with big plans for the future. diningwithstrangers.com/the-dinners/11…

Recap of the 12 brilliant strangers I dined with this year: @JonnElledge, @NaomiPaxton, @JoeHimali, Raine McKeython, Dani Luv, Doudgy Charmant, @MrBrianArya, @mkraju, Robert Factor, Bennet Rea, @JebBrooks and @SHESHEDANZ diningwithstrangers.com/2025/12/31/12-…

Interview 142: Singer and actor Azusa Sheshe Dance @SHESHEDANZ on finding her voice in Hairspray and other theater, leaving Tennessee for New York, and choosing the subway as another stage – with an audience of over 50,000 on TikTok diningwithstrangers.com/the-dinners/14…

Throwback Thursday 109 (October 2018): At just 20, Demetrius Harmon turned fame on the short video app Vine into a 2M+ following, using it to talk openly about depression, hoping to help others feel less alone diningwithstrangers.com/the-dinners/11…

Throwback Thursday 108 (September 2018): Lunch with Jay Nix, owner of New Orleans’ landmark Parkway Bakery & Tavern, serving up classic po’ boy (or poor boy, in Parkway-speak) sandwiches diningwithstrangers.com/the-dinners/10…

Interview 141: I met globe-trotting YouTuber @JebBrooks at D.C.’s Filomena to talk about his hit travel channel Greener Grass, finding joy on planes, trains and buses — and whether the grass really is greener elsewhere diningwithstrangers.com/the-dinners/14…

Throwback Thursday 107 (September 2018): Breakfast in Brooklyn with actor Erick Lopez. A high school injury ended his sports dreams, so he took up drama instead — now he’s acting in TV and film, including as Hector on Crazy Ex-Girlfriend. diningwithstrangers.com/the-dinners/10…

Throwback Thursday 106 (May 2018): Dinner with Dean Gold, owner and executive chef of Dino’s Grotto, an Italian-inspired restaurant in D.C. He shared the ups and downs of the industry, as well as his life story that includes wine, economics, jazz and more. diningwithstrangers.com/the-dinners/10…

Throwback Thursday 105 (April 2018): Dinner with Jamila Robinson at Elena in Washington, D.C., talking food, family, and shaping the future of storytelling through dining. diningwithstrangers.com/the-dinners/10…

Interview 140: Dinner with Bennett Rea, creator of the viral online series Cookin’ With Congress, recreating bizarre recipes of politicians and others. We talked possum, Taft’s legendary appetite, George Santos’ carbonara, and how politics and food collide diningwithstrangers.com/the-dinners/14…

Throwback Thursday 104 (April 2018): I met André Hueston Mack for supper in New York. He's an ex-banker turned award-winning sommelier, who talked about launching his own wine label and bar diningwithstrangers.com/the-dinners/10…

Interview 139: When I was 10, I saw actor Robert Factor in the cult comedy film Ninja Academy. A few weeks ago, at 45, I had lunch with him in Glendale, California, to hear his story: juvenile hall, acting, writing, grief and reinvention. diningwithstrangers.com/the-dinners/13…

Dinner 138: Meeting CNN’s @mkraju at Pascual in DC to talk scoops, his journey to top Capitol Hill reporter, being yelled at on live TV, and balancing journalism with family life. diningwithstrangers.com/the-dinners/13…

Throwback Thursday 102: January 2018 dinner with actor Kurt Fuller. People swear they’ve met him before, they just can’t remember from where. But it’s really because he’s “that guy,” the character actor in movies (Ghostbusters II) and TV shows (Psych). diningwithstrangers.com/the-dinners/10…

Brian 'The Motel Guy' @MrBrianArya didn’t set out to become TikTok-famous — but his heartfelt videos about life at his family’s NJ motel struck a chord with 1M+ followers. He talked storytelling, failure and success, and life at the Lincoln Tunnel Motel diningwithstrangers.com/the-dinners/13…

Throwback Thursday 101: Portraits of rabbis blessing basketballs. Llamas with fruit on their heads. Foreheads painted alongside strange, thoughtful objects. Welcome to artist Jonathan Blum's weird world, and my December 2017 dinner with him. diningwithstrangers.com/the-dinners/10…

Dinner 136 is with Doudgy “Dew” Charmant, a D.C. artist whose vibrant paintings reflect joy, loss, and legacy — and how he once got in trouble with his uncle for tracing a picture of 50 Cent. diningwithstrangers.com/the-dinners/13…

Dining With Strangers is now on Substack for your subscribing pleasure: diningwithstrangers.substack.com/subscribe?utm_…