Summer A to Z, 2025 Edition
A bucket list, kind of
My spirit for summertime is fleeting—the second it hits 85 degrees here in LA I become summer’s biggest hater. But for now, while the weather is nice and the potential for summer plans is ahead, I’m focusing on the things I’m looking forward to over the next few months—in, once again, A to Z format.
A — Arnold Palmers. I’ve been on a huge AP kick lately, especially with a twist. The best is at Amara Kitchen in Highland Park: the Rose Palmer, a rose-infused, iced green tea mixed with lemonade.
B — Baby blue. Through a series of events (an Allison Bornstein styling session, a serious closet cleanout, and some deep diving into seasonal color analysis) I’ve come to the conclusion that I am open to wearing light blues this summer. This is a major development, as you rarely will find me outside of my typical black-white-brown-navy palette.
C — Café culture. I’m talking bars that open at noon, hours-long patio hangs, and coffees that turn into cocktails.
D — Daytime pajamas. I’ll only be wearing silhouettes that could be mistaken for loungewear through these summer days: Donni pants, these Cos shorts, and floaty little nightgowns that pair well with a chunky fisherman sandal.
E — Speaking of sandals, anything from Emme Parsons will do.
F — Fish-shaped everything. Fish-shaped plates! Fish-shaped bottle openers! Fish-shaped charms! ‘Tis the summer of the fish.
G — Grocery store hauls. I want to see what you’re buying for your picnic or your beach day or your road trip or your plane ride. (And if you are similarly curious about what’s in people’s market baskets, there’s a fun feature on this in the À La Carte Summer Print issue!)
H — Hats. I’ve been off hats for a bit but I think I’m warming up to the idea of a cute woven bucket hat or something with a little structure to it to wear with all my daytime pajamas.
I — Ina Garten’s Garden Pasta. The use of angel hair here feels so peak ‘90s daytime food TV to me and I absolutely love it.
J — Juicy red wines. I don’t know what it says about my palate that I like wine that is highly chuggable, but rarely does an order of “your favorite juicy red” steer me wrong.
K — Kitchen hangs. Everyone around a kitchen island with snacks, some music playing, and the windows open… Nothing better.
L — Lemon granita. Egyptian-Greek recipe developer Arôme Cassis always makes granitas that look divine, like these served in hollowed-out lemons or these in mandarin oranges. I MUST TRY.
M — Miu Miu Spring Summer 2024. Perfect inspiration for all the paracord jewelry, polo shirts, and windbreakers we’ve collected over the last few months.
N — Not being tan. I made a quick trip to Palm Springs last week with a bunch of friends for Jordy’s birthday and somewhere along the way I realized that I am, at the ripe age of 35, finally okay with being the palest person at the pool. What used to be an insecurity has evolved into the realization that I will look younger than most for longer than many and that, to me, is well worth it.
O — Orcy wine glasses. A status symbol amongst wine-bar-dwellers, the Orcy wine glass is hard to get your hands on if you aren’t an owner of a bar or restaurant. But I’m telling you now, if you can track down a set for yourself, you’ll bank some points from your snobbiest friends. (I know they don’t look like much, but IRL they are the ideal shape.)
P — This playlist, curated for me by my pal
from Latin Gold Records. It’s exactly what I want my summer to sound like.Q — Quick trips just outside of town. I forget that one of the perks of living in LA is that I’m just two hours away from a vacation destination in any direction, from wine tasting in Santa Barbara to vintage shopping in the desert to boat days at Lake Arrowhead. We’ve got Italy at home!
R — Recession hosting. It can be expensive to have people over for dinner or aperitivo hour, but that doesn’t mean you should give up parties altogether. A few ideas for a fun Friday night on a budget:
Ask someone to pick up a bunch of Taco Bell on their way over to your house, then serve your menu of Cheesy Gordita Crunches and Crunchwrap Supremes on your fanciest plates with fabric napkins.
Have your guests each bring a pizza from a different spot in your neighborhood, cut the pizzas into tiny slices, then do a blind taste test of each to rank them. Send each guest home with a slice from each pizza box—they’ll have leftovers for life.
Invite everyone you know to a park one afternoon and tell them they *have* to bring a homemade snack. Host a competition and have everyone vote for the best tasting snack, the snack with the best presentation, and the snack with the best story behind it.
S — Summer reading lists. I used to love getting my summer reading list when I was a kid, so this year I’m making my own. It’ll be a mix of recs from friends, new releases, and picks from my TBR pile, but my goal will be to finish all of them by Labor Day.
T — Tomato toast. It’s hard to mess up tomato toast, whether you’re doing a Grossy Pelosi-style tomato-mayo combo or a Spanish pan con tomate. My go-to is the one from the All Time cookbook, but this one looks similar.
U — The silk knitwear from Une Heures. It seems somewhat counterintuitive to put a knitwear brand on my summer bucket list but their striped crewneck tees composed of Italian silk yarn have made their way onto my wishlist regardless.
V — Vintage shopping. Now that I’ve pretty much built up a foundation of basics in my wardrobe, I’m looking to introduce some vintage accessories into the mix this summer. Fun little bags, silk scarves, slightly funky jewelry, maybe a cute hair accessory…
W — Weekend rotting. I don’t have this affliction, but I know many of you do—the guilty feeling that comes from not doing something *fun* on the weekend. As a certified leisure specialist, I’m telling you that laying around all weekend is doing something. You’re watching Housewives! You’re resting! You’re taking an everything shower! I’m granting you permission to opt out this summer.
X — Pass.
Y — Yellow lenses. When I worked at ban.do I designed a pair of sunglasses loosely inspired by this Gucci pair—I don’t think we ever ended up selling them, but I have the sample and I’ve been wearing them a lot lately.
Z — Zines. Specifically mine, which comes out this Friday.
If you’re in LA this Saturday the 7th, be sure to stop by THE À LA CARTE NEWSSTAND at Platform in Culver City between 11 and 5! I’ll be there slinging the print issue and other sundries, Bucatini will be serving aperitivo at our sidewalk café, and the first 50 people to buy a magazine will get a free copy of THE À LA CARTE GUIDE TO LOS ANGELES—a mini publication you can only buy at this pop-up!
I’ve never done something like this before and truthfully I am having nightmares that no one will show up, so if you’re planning on popping by let me know—I’d love to see you!
x
Ali
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I'll have you know I made a Spanish(ish) themed tapas dinner for my family tonight (pan a tomate with some sort of potato/fritata thing from Trader Joe's) plus chorizo & cheese and I played your playlist (it's still playing, actually) and I felt very jet set and not at all like I live in Florida and have work tomorrow.
Will you be shipping your mag this time around??