Join Shelley Lindgren at Omnivore Books in conversation with Mariana Velasquez in honor of the relaase of Mariana’ beautiful hosting cookbook Revel - A Maximalist's Guide to Having People Over

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.

The art of entertaining starts long before your guests arrive. Revel is chef, food stylist, and housewares designer Mariana Velasquez’ 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.