If you’ve never been to a Darling Dinner, you need to join the next one. Our heart behind them is to put away our phones—no awkward silences with everyone staring down at their devices—and have deep, intentional conversation that imparts wisdom to one another.
In an age where we are more “connected” and “plugged in” than ever before in history, statistics show that we are actually lonelier than ever. This is why we believe in returning to the old-fashioned, in-person art of connection—there’s nothing that can replace it.
A couple of weeks ago, we hosted a dinner with OWIU, an architecture and design firm with a beautiful ceramics and home goods line. Each piece of their goods is carefully designed and handmade by an OWIU team member in the Arts District (downtown Los Angeles) studio. No work is outsourced, and no two pieces are alike.
This philosophy ties perfectly with our “Darling, you are a work of art” tagline, reminding women they are entirely original and valuable.
The evening began in OWIU’s minimal, gorgeous space as 20 women from all over—even some from out of state—gathered. We gravitated to the beautiful charcuterie board and red and white wine by our favorite local brand Friendly Noise.
As we sat down to admire the OWIU place settings, we saw on our plates a card from Sugarwish, a gifting company that allows you to choose a gift from fun categories such as sweets, artisan coffee and tea, candles, gourmet pantry items and more. We couldn’t wait to scan the QR codes at home to redeem something special and also use their service to send gifts to our friends in the future.
The evening began with Sarah Dubbeldam, Darling’s Founder, telling the history of Darling and the cadence for the evening, three courses paired with three questions centered around the theme of “Getting Unstuck.”
As our fantastic chefs, Ryan Terrio and Matt Correia, brought out our first course—a warm cabbage salad with goat cheese and romesco sauce, the icebreaker question was posed:
If you could have an alternative life right now, what would that look like?
We dreamt about having a farm or moving to Italy or France, among other daydreams.
Question two took us to the heart of the theme, paired with a salmon bowl with vegetable broth and homemade caramelle pasta with parsnip puree inside.
What do you feel like is the most stagnant or stuck part of your life?
This one really opened us up, as women shared about feeling stuck in a career, stuck in procrastination, or even in a mindset like lack of confidence. It was amazing to know that none of us are alone in having these feelings.
Question three, paired with a chocolate mousse dessert brought us to solutions around the issue of being stuck:
How can you shift your reality or perspective around your situation?
We each jumped in to provide wisdom from our own experiences and affirm one another on our efforts to move forward.
At the end of the evening, we each felt empowered to be strong and push through our hardships, knowing that we have the agency to assert ourselves and form the lives we desire.
At the end of the evening, we shopped the Darling and OWIU collections and exchanged contact information, looking forward to the next time we’d be together.
We are so excited to continue these dinners in Los Angeles and also other cities, if you’d like to join the next one, please join the waitlist here.
