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A
Okay, this happens every holiday season. I get a little depleted and off my routine after the holidays. Listen, I don't know why I did it, but I decided to double down on the eggnog this year. Double down on the eggnog and I'm feeling its effects. So Prolon's five day fasting mimicking diet really makes it easy to reset heading into the new year. Prolon's fasting mimicking diet is a revolutionary plant based nutrition nourishes the body while keeping it in a fasting state. It works at the cellular level to support fat loss, glowing skin, sharper focus, all that good stuff. And with its simple structured plan, you can really build momentum in just a few days. Prolon is Based on over two decades of research from USC's Longevity Institute and backed by top medical centers. Everything comes prepackaged. Five days, five boxes, no guesswork, and three consecutive cycles have been shown to reduce your biolog age score by 2.5 years and your waist by 1.5 inches. Plus, Prolon is the first and only patent nutrition program to support longevity through cellular rejuvenation. Just in time for the new year, Prolon is offering dinners on me listeners 15% off their five day nutrition program for your post holiday. Glow up when you go to prolonlife.com d o m that's P R-O-L-O-N life.com d o for 15% off. What I love about staying at an Airbnb is that feeling of walking into a place that already gets what you need. The thoughtful touches, the little comforts, the sense that someone really prepared for you to be there. I'm about to experience that again on a trip up to wine country in Napa. We are going up there for the New year and I'm really excited about it. I booked this beautiful home with all of these views over the hills of Napa. But what I really love about the place is it has a big kitchen so we can have family breakfasts and meals there. And it has enough space for the entire family to spread out. And it reminded me how much the little details make a place feel special. You walk in and there's fresh coffee on the counter. The essentials are stocked. There's a note with the WI fi password and the font is big enough that you don't need a magnifying glass to read it. Those thoughtful little touches really make a difference and it made me think about hosting my home on Airbnb when I'm away. But the idea of getting my place guest Ready with all those thoughtful touches is a bit, I don't know, overwhelming. That's where Airbnb's co host Network comes in. You can hire a local co host to help with all the behind the scenes stuff that makes a stay run smoothly. Guest communication, handling check ins, and even design and styling to make your place feel lived in and cozy if you need that. And if you have a place you've been thinking about hosting, a guest room, a studio over the garage, even your whole home while you're away, a co host can help you actually pull it off without adding more to your plate. So if your New Year's resolution is to earn a little extra money or finally make use of that space, start the easy way with Airbnb's Co Host network. Find a co host@airbnb.com host hey, it's Jesse. So listen, I have a little extra side dish for you from this week's episode of Dinner's on Me with Ali Larder, who is currently starring in the hit series Landman, streaming on Paramount. We got together on the Penthouse Patty of Mastro Steakhouse in Beverly Hills, and I was so excited to break into a seafood tower with her and get into her career and her new life in the Midwest and her amazing part as Angela opposite none other than Billy Bob Thornton. I mean, this show, Landman, it has such an amazing cast. Demi Moore, Jon Hamm, Sam Elliot. Ali told me about her audition process, the early days of working together, and what it was like shooting on location in Texas. Okay, let's dive into the conversation. You all are so incredible.
B
It was like, it was a long process for me. You know, I've talked about my casting process a lot, but it was over three months and my first audition was four pages, the first scene and the FaceTime scene. But you don't know that because you don't have a script.
A
Right?
B
You know, like, and a lot of the actors are just offered these roles in Taylor's world, you know, with John Papsidera, and Taylor kind of going through it and then he casts around it and he puts the other actors through a really arduous process and it unfolded. And then I had like 10 pages. And then the night before I had to fly down to test, he threw in an extra three page monologue. So I had 19 pages.
A
Oh, my God.
B
I know, but it's like after I even read the first scene, I wanted to play this character because it's very rare for me in my career that I've gotten a chance to lean into all the sides of a woman, and she can be so ballsy and fierce. And then also there's these massive, vulnerable moments, and then moments of historical laughter where she's putting on a show, you know, trying to get a rise out of her husband or, you know, just making life fun and a game. And then there are these real moments of sincerity. There's just so much. There was so much in there, and I wanted to do that. Like, I wanted to get in, like, dig into all those complexities. And I really wanted to work next to Billy and be part of something that I thought could be very special.
A
I mean, you've had, like, this. There's a theme in, like, the roles that you've played that you play these women who, on the surface, can be underestimated, and they have this great agency to them and this. I mean, you're so spot on by saying that you're playing so many different facets, because I have seen you. I've seen versions, like colors of this character and other people you've played, but this is a very full version. And I think part of that's just the. The luxury of getting to play someone over many episodes. You get to parse out these pieces, and it's such a gift when you get to play that on a series. But, I mean, I love how much agency she has over herself, but also over the people that she loves.
B
I mean, in Texas, the women really run the show. I mean, that's part of it, too. You know, it's like, it's truthful to that part of the world when I say that. It's. There's a fiercest to them and a strength, but they, like, own it, you know? Yeah. It's been really exciting to kind of get to go to those places and have scenes that are 10 pages long, too, you know what I'm saying? Like, that's such a dream. You never get that. And that's, to me, what makes our show so different, you know?
A
And you all are on location together in West Texas, right?
B
Yeah. Five months in Fort Worth. Yes, Fort Worth.
A
I do love Fort Worth. My grandparents were from that area.
B
Did you grow up going there?
A
I did. I'm stock in New Mexico.
B
Okay.
A
So we would drive into Texas and, like. Yeah, West Texas. Yeah, it's a. It's an incredible place.
B
Yeah.
A
Do you. I mean, what's it like? What do you. How do you feel your time there?
B
I mean, we're working a lot, you know, like, especially this season. I was. I'm always working last Season, you know, I love being in Fort Worth because you're around the reality of what the show is. You know, it's like. It's like you go to the stockyards, you feel. Feel like the cattlemen. You know, there's nobody wearing a cowboy hat that doesn't, like, didn't just come from the fucking rodeo. You know what I'm saying? Like, there's no, like, pomp and circumstance in that way. It's really real. And so that I love. And I love being around the women who are just, like, tough and fierce, but, like, really own their femininity. Like, love it, you know, so it's, like, really interesting to be able to have that around. And then all that just bleeds into why the show looks and feels authentic.
A
Yeah. I mean, that. That part of the country. So interesting because there's such insane wealth.
B
Yes. Yeah.
A
With just the industry that. That's there. And I mean, I remember I was at a human Rights campaign gala and that the. The Texas contingency was there, and they were like, high hair, lots of sparkles, and like, this is how they do a gala.
B
More is better.
A
And they were the ones who were like, when it was like the live auction, like, they were the ones that were, like, going way higher than anyone else in the room.
B
Absolutely. I mean, it's a place unto itself. And it's like, Dallas is so different from Fort Worth. All the different places within Texas have their own unique kind of thing that makes them then them. But the oil is just. I mean, that's the heartbeat of Fort Worth, you know, and it's just like, generational.
A
I mean, have you ever spent any, like, extended amount of time there is this, like.
B
That was my first time going, and now it's like, you know, when I have time off, I'm flying home to my kids. So it's like as a working mom. Yeah. In Idaho. And as a working mom, like, you're doing it and you have three or four days, like, you're jumping the plane. You're going and doing that, you're jumping back. And I just think of it. It's like. It's like in two ways. Like, this is the greatest season of my life, but it's not really my season, meaning, like, I'm so busy, like, either working on the show or being with my children or connecting with my parents, being with my husband, and then you're like, back to work, you know, so it's not like a downtime. It's not like this time of, like, self growth. And development. It's this time of like, it's just, it's go time, you know?
A
Yeah. I mean, we just. I think I'm a parent now. I have a five year old and a three year old and like, I. Congratulations. My. Yeah. I look at my two boys. Okay.
B
Beautiful.
A
I look at my career in such a different way now as a parent. I mean, I prioritize my time, obviously, differently.
B
Definitely.
A
I also find myself going back and forth and traveling way more. And it's like, it's not even something I think twice about. It's just like the way it has to be.
B
Exactly, exactly.
A
But also like, you know, when I was doing Modern Family, for example, I was just, you know, I was in a new relationship. That's all I had to worry about. I was just like, you know, free and easy and like, I just, I had a different relationship with this industry. And now it's, you know, it's.
B
Well, we've all been doing this for a long time. I listened to you with Lizzy Caplan and was laughing about like, the smokehouse, you know, and like the pilots that we all got. And then that's where I met John Hamm. Like, that's so crazy.
A
Yeah. John Hammond's just like, like trying to find a job.
B
I mean, that's wild.
A
He's a pre madman. He's like, I don't know what I'm gonna do.
B
I mean, just sitting at the smokehouse.
A
Just sitting at the smokehouse, you know, trying to find it, like, just trying to figure it out.
B
But like, all the actors, I feel like during that time, like, everyone did lean on each other, you know, like, that's when it was like seven auditions a day. Like I was like racing in my Corolla to the next one, you know what I'm saying? Like, the air conditioning's out, you're sweating. You get your pages like the second you get there.
A
True.
B
It was such a different time in our industry and, you know, I kind of cherish it too, you know, and then most of the people that are coming up now will never experience what we experience.
A
So, you know, I mean, I cherish it, but I'm also like, glad to be past it.
B
Oh, yeah, yeah. There's no going backwards. No, no, no.
A
How old are your kids now?
B
So my son's 14 and our daughter's 10. Okay. Yeah. So it's fun. It's actually really fun. Ages. You know, I think you'll. You'll see, like, as they get older, you really want to start, like traveling with them and like, experiencing things together where in the beginning it's like, you know, you love to take them on tricks, but trips. But then you want to go with your partner and go off on, have an experience. Now we all want to be together. And so that's where life has really shifted in the last couple years, is we want them on the adventure with us. You know, it's fun ages. Yeah, it's fun ages. Excited for that.
A
I mean, I'm having Fun now at 3 and 5.
B
So, of course, it's just the travel gear, like, the amount of stuff.
A
The amount.
B
And the bugaboos and the da, da, da, and the food.
A
I think we're fortunately out of the stroller phase now.
B
Okay, good.
A
Oh, my God. The first time I traveled with the stroller.
B
Yeah.
A
If there had been. And I'm sure there's like a camera on me.
B
Yeah, yeah. Some TMZ there is.
A
I mean, the way I threw the stroller across the airport trying to figure out how to open it up.
B
Yeah. Or just shoving them in your car. Like, just never. I never collapsed mine. The whole time I was like, get.
A
In that hatchback now for a quick break, but don't go away. When we come back, Ali tells me why she moved her family from LA to Idaho during the pandemic. Okay, be right back. Big thanks to HomeServe for sponsoring this episode. You know, owning a home, it's amazing until it's not. One minute you're enjoying your morning coffee, and the next, you're ankle deep in water from a burst pipe. Oh, here's a true story. I had a near miss with a faulty water heater a while back, and I kept thinking, if this had gone out over the weekend, how much would this have cost? Repairs. They don't care about timing. They definitely don't care about your budget. That's where HomeServe comes in. It's like a subscription for your home, covering the things your regular homeowner's insurance usually doesn't. Like plumbing failures, H vac breakdowns, or electrical issues. For as little as $4.99 a month, they've got your back. And the best part, you don't have to panic searching for a contractor. You can just call HomeServe's 24. 7 hotline and schedule a repair with a reliable local professional. They've been helping homeowners for over 20 years. With a network of 2,600 contractors across the country. And with 4.5 million customers, a 4.8 out of 5 post repair rating and an A BBB rating. You know, they're the real deal. If I had needed this, homeserv is what I'd use. Knowing that peace of mind is just a call away is worth it. Help protect your home systems and your wallet with HomeServe against covered repairs. Plans start at just $4.99 a month. Go to HomeServe.com to find the plan that's right for you. That's HomeSe. Not available everywhere. Most plans range between $4.99 and $11.99 a month for your first year. Terms apply on covered repairs. I've talked pretty openly on this show, but, you know, therapy actually has been really a very important part of my life. Not because of some big thing that happened, but because having a space to check in and get honest and talk things through actually makes everything else feel so much more manageable. The hardest part, though, can be getting started. I literally think I had start therapy on my to do list for, well, longer than I would like to admit. Grow Therapy makes it way easier to check off the list. It's covered by insurance and care can start in as little as two days. Whether it's your first time in therapy or your 50th, grow makes it easier to find a therapist who fits you, not the other way around. They connect you with thousands of independent licensed therapists across the United States offering both virtual and in person sessions, nights and weekends. There are no subscriptions, no long term commitments. You just pay per session. And if something comes up, you can Cancel up to 24 hours in advance at no cost. Whatever challenges you're facing, Grow Therapy is here to help. Sessions average about $20 with insurance, and some pay as little as $0 depending on their plan. Visit growththerapy.com d d o m today to get started. That's growththerapy.com dom availability and coverage vary by state and insurance plan. And we're back with more dinners on me from la.
B
Yes.
A
And you love it?
B
I love it. You know, we drove in five years ago on our daughter's sixth birthday and we were only going for two months. It was like, you know, trying to homeschool during that was just brutal. And, you know, that time is a place where, you know, you know, Haze and I were like, this isn't working. And if they're gonna be on screens, let's go ski as a family. Let's have an experience. And I'd actually never been to Sun Valley. That was my husband's, I'm gonna say Sun Valley. You know, he Gets so mad at me. He's like, we live in Idaho. Stop saying that. But we drove into this ski town, and, you know, it was incredible to be able to be together in this tiny rural place and then ski. And they would do a couple hours. And then we realized that the schools were open there, so we put our daughter in kindergarten and we extended it because it was still shut down in la. And so she was able to go and be around other children, and that.
A
Was so lucky that you got to do that.
B
Incredible. And then we also spent a lot of time outside, you know, so she didn't have to be mad, because they're looking at mouths, they're still learning their vocabulary and facial expression and all that. So we spent a lot of time outside. And then we went home for the summer because we had recently built a house in Rustic Canyon that we thought was going to be like a generational house, you know, that we would be there forever and pass it down to the children. And we looked at each other and we're like, could we do this? Like, we're both working actors. You know, the idea was, like, you know, he would do, like, you know, a comedy on the lot. You know, I would do some kind of drama, maybe do a movie that I traveled here or there. But we'd be with our children the whole time living a life, like, you know, trying to normalize our profession in some way. So, yeah, so we. We came back for the summer, and we were just like, can we do this? And will we lose our careers? Like, like, you know, what's gonna happen? You know, and it was the first time, I think my husband, you know, and I were like, like, let's forge the path that feels right to us and, you know, let the cards fall where they're gonna fall. And if we get on flights more for an audition or whatever that is, like, let's just try. And so we went there, we rented a house, you know, we put our children in school, and we just fell.
A
In love, which to me, seems like that's the real commitment when you put your kids in school, because that's, you know, they're gonna start developing relationships.
B
That's right.
A
That's the part that, like, hard. Cause Jess and I talked about, do we go back, back, back east now that, you know, I'm kind of, like, working more everywhere. That's the other thing is, like, the industry sort of has shifted from LA or even New York sort of.
B
Yes.
A
In different places now. Yeah, you don't really need to be in these Cities. But, you know, when you think about it, we're like. Well, you know, with the kids, like, once we move them, it feels a little bit more permanent.
B
I think, like, we were at 10 and 6 and that's, like, kind of the last time.
A
Yeah.
B
10 is like, you gotta get somewhere by 10.
A
Yeah.
B
You know, because he went into the fifth grade and, you know, he had this extraordinary teacher. And, you know, it just started really feeling right, knowing that we could pivot and come back, you know, like, we weren't. I was giving it a year, you know, of going, is this possible? And it just, you know, like, we just kept getting, like, green lights, you know, like, our son met an incredible group of boys. We met, met some amazing families that had grown up there and lived there for generations. And then also people that had recently done the same move. And it's small, and we loved the idea of really giving our kids the values of a small town, you know, like, really slowing down, being accountable, respect, you know, that kind of stuff.
A
Yeah.
B
Would you let your kids in the industry?
A
I feel like the responsible thing is to say no. I love what I do so much. The idea of my parents not allowing me to do that.
B
Right.
A
Is devastating.
B
Yeah.
A
I also, when I started, I was in Albuquerque, New Mexico, and I didn't, like, dive into la.
B
Right.
A
I look at, like, Aubrey Emmons, who played my daughter on Modern Family, and she started when she was 4, and she's an incredible, you know, young adult now. And. But I saw, like, how hard that was for her, too. I mean, like, you know, not just. Not just not understanding what she was doing. And, like, I saw, like, you know, people being frustrated with her because she's four and it's like, you know, she could only do what she could. So that part, like, seeing. Thinking about my kids in that sort of stressful environment, I don't know if I can do that. But if they wanted to explore it in a way that felt safer, kind of like the way I felt like I was able to. Maybe you felt like you were able to. I think that I'd be very open to it.
B
Yeah. Yeah. I mean, I agree. You know, it's really hard with social media now because, you know, my son's almost 15, so he's allowed to, you know, he got Snapchat and he's allowed on it. But our daughter is in and she. I think she has, like 575 videos from this year already. She videos herself. She does little diaries in the morning. She knows, like, she's got Cap, cut. She's got all this stuff. She doesn't show it to anyone. It's like her and her friends, they just, like, text them back.
A
So it's just private for her and her friends.
B
Private for her and for us. But she loves it, you know what I'm saying? She loves it and she is a bit of a ham. So we'll just. We'll see how it unfolds with their life. But I think that for me, with this business, the one thing is, like, I wouldn't want them just to, like, go to Juilliard or go to, like, this tish. You know what I'm saying? Like, you need to have two parts of your life within this industry.
A
Yeah.
B
You know what I'm saying? So that you don't have. You don't have to rely on this industry. This industry needs to be, like, the bonus in life, you know, it's like, I want them. I would hope that they have two parts of it, you know?
A
Yeah. What would you have done if you. If things didn't pan out?
B
I don't know.
A
I don't think we thought, like. Have we followed that advice? No.
B
Ever? Well, exactly. Exactly.
A
Because I don't know what I would have done. Like, I say. I say now, it's like, oh, I would have gone to culinary school, which I think I would have.
B
Yeah.
A
I don't know if, like, at that young age I would have known that. That's something that I was excited about.
B
Right. I did want to be a news broadcaster. Like, I thought that was going to be my path.
A
Path.
B
And I ended up having a chance to go to Japan when I was 17, and that was a real pivot for me. That was like, first starting to go to New York and then starting to travel internationally.
A
Did you go with family?
B
I went alone. It's like, my dad will always say it's like walking me to the airport, like, the sobs. Because he knew, like, I wasn't coming back.
A
As a parent now, could you imagine this? No.
B
I would be there just, like, two hotels away. Yeah. I will track my children. I. Like, I do not even care.
A
Oh, yeah.
B
Like, I was a force of nature, though. I don't know if my parents knew what to do with me, do you know what I'm saying? But, you know, that's when I kind of got the wanderlust, you know, And I got this chance to live in Japan and Italy and I was traveling and it was just, again, being exposed to so many different people and different cultures. It was enthralling and so that's when I started like, kind of going, okay, like, how do we want to express ourselves? What do you want with your life? And I came to LA and started at the Howard Fine studio and just like dug in. And I was like, if you're gonna do this, you just need to study, right? And I've worked with, you know, everyone from Tony Greco, Ivana Chubbuck. I've talked about like, you know, and then you work with all these different people and you put together what starts to work for you. Right? Like different pieces of the process.
A
Now for a quick break, but don't go away. When we come back, Ali and I bond over our shared love of cooking. Ooh, fun fact. We both have cookbooks. You know what, go buy them. Actually, I'm gonna plug them. They're great. Okay. Be right back. Okay. This happens every holiday season. I get a little depleted and off my routine after the holidays. Listen, I don't know why I did it, but I decided to double down on the eggnog this year. Double down on the eggnog and I'm feeling its effects. So Prolon's five day Fasting Mimicking Diet really makes it easy to reset heading into the new year. Prolon's Fasting Mimicking diet is a revolutionary plant based nutrition program that nourishes the body while keeping it in a fasting state. It works at the cellular level to support fat loss, glowing skin, sharper focus, all that good stuff. And with its simple structured plan, you can really build momentum in just a few days. Provon is Based on over two decades of from USC's Longevity Institute and backed by top medical centers. Everything comes prepackaged. Five days, five boxes, no guesswork, and three consecutive cycles have been shown to reduce your biological age score by 2.5 years and your waist by 1.5 inches. Plus, Prolon is the first and only patent nutrition program to support longevity through cellular rejuvenation. Just in time for the new year, Prolon is offering Dinners On Me listeners 15% off their five day nutrition program for your post holiday. Glow up when you go to prolonlife.com d o n that's p r o l o n life.com dom for 15% off. And we're back with more Dinners on Me. You wrote a cookbook? I did. I wrote a cookbook too.
B
Comment? What's it called?
A
Mine's called Food between Friends. You're gonna get a copy?
B
Most definitely.
A
Guests get a copy. Okay.
B
No. So is yours like dinner parties then?
A
It's not dinner parties. Yours is dinner, but entertainment.
B
Mine is.
A
Yeah, it's called food. Well, I mean, it's sort of about cooking with friends. So I have a very close friend named Julie Tan, who's my cooking partner, and she went to culinary school. I always wanted to go to culinary school.
B
Yes.
A
And because of my career, I just never had time. I mean, it's really a commitment.
B
Yeah, of course.
A
I mean, it's not just like something you can do in the evenings. It's a whole thing. And I really wanted to do it right. And so, like, she sort of like helped me figure out my way around the kitchen. I was, you know, a great home cook, but, like, I wanted to, like, learn some real skills. And so we started cooking together and then we started developing some recipes together, and then that led into a cookbook. So she's. She's on the COVID with me. It's me and her together.
B
Beautiful. So what was like the greatest skill that you learned from her?
A
I mean, truly, Just like how to dice an onion properly. Yeah, I like that. I can do that.
B
Take the top off. Yeah, yeah.
A
But just like taking the long way for things.
B
Right.
A
And not, not always doing the shortcut.
B
Yes. Which is time, which is a luxury.
A
Like, I love to put everything in their little bowls.
B
Yes.
A
She's really great with pastries and cook. Like, she's a great baker. So she taught me how to like, really do a great pie and like.
B
Make good pie dough and just things.
A
That like, I was always kind of scared of. Yeah, yeah, yeah. I'm really proud of it.
B
There's never ending amount of things to learn how to make. You know, like, there was no way I was getting on the sourdough train because, like, I don't need bread in my house. Like, my husband jokes, like when I'm. When I'm filming or leaving on press tour and then when I'm not working, the kitchen is totally different. It's two different kitchens, you know, because I will eat everything. I don't have a lot of self control. Like, I really love cooking and I really love eating. Oh, I keep my. I just keep it clean. I eat a lot. It's just like, I'm not doing the cheeses and dripping in red wine and like, you know, all like the beef Wellingtons and like baking, baking, baking, which I love to do too. Like, simpler baking. Not it's super complicated because it's for the children. Like, I love to do a pavlova and I love, like a flowerless chocolate cake. Like that's always around for me now, but I do. I just. I love, I love that you made a cookbook. And I think mine's like over 10 years old now. And I took. I took two years off after my son was born because I just needed a break.
A
Yeah.
B
To like, not be in the public eye and be judged at every single turn of your life.
A
Right.
B
And it was like. Like one of the great decisions of.
A
My life is this for After Heroes. Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah.
B
And I had Teddy, and then I did that, and it just was like, it took a couple years.
A
Writing a cookbook. I don't think people understand how arduous that can be.
B
Oh, my gosh.
A
I mean, you have to not only develop recipes, but then hire recipe testers who can cross test these things for sure. It's a whole thing.
B
It's a whole thing.
A
And I remember being so fixated on certain recipes I wanted to, like, create and, like, they weren't working out. I was like, jamming a square peg into a round hole. I was like, no, I wanted to.
B
Or you wake up at three in the morning and you just start cooking. Like, that was a big thing for me. Like, where I'd wake up at 5am and just I was back in the kitchen. And mine was more like the 10,000 hours. You know, it's just like things that I had made over and over and over and over again. And my best friend Tracy Zahorian and I did it together. And that was the greatest gift because we were just like, we made it as an expression of what we love. Love to eat.
A
Yeah.
B
You know what I'm saying? Like how we love to throw a dinner party. And, you know, it was like kind of before everything was kind of being shown as messy.
A
Yeah.
B
And that was a huge part of it. Like how the mistakes.
A
Yeah, exactly.
B
Make it beautiful.
A
Right.
B
And the things that don't work, you make it a positive.
A
You know, 10 years ago, it was all about, you know, the tweezers and like, everything.
B
It was so beautiful.
A
Yeah.
B
And like, that's almost unattainable.
A
It's unattainable.
B
It's unattainable. It's too much pressure for a home cook. It's just simply too much pressure. And that takes away all the beauty of cooking to me.
A
Yeah.
B
You know, so. Well, lucky us that we got to do our cookbooks.
A
That was a little more from my chat with actor Ali Larder. If you haven't heard our full conversation yet, make sure to check it out on dinners on me. This episode of Dinners on Me was recorded at Mastro Steakhouse in Beverly Hills, California. Next week on Dinner's on Me. You know him as well, my husband Cam on Modern Family. It's Eric Stonestreet. We'll get into some of our favorite memories working together over 11 seasons. Eric's incredible attention to detail when it came to Fizbo the clown. Plus, I get the inside scoop on his super secret wedding. It was so secret, I didn't even know about it until just a few days before it happened. This is gonna be a fun one. Dinners on Me is a production of Sony Music Entertainment and a kid named Beckett Productions. It's hosted by me, Jesse Tyler Ferguson. It's executive produced by me and Jonathan Hirsch. Our showrunner is Joanna Clay. Our associate producer is Alyssa Midcalf. Sam Baer engineered this episode, Hansdale. She composed our theme music. Our head of production is Sami Allison. Special thanks to Tameka Balance Kolasny and Justin Makita. I'm Jesse Tyler Ferguson. Join me next week.
B
This is not a drill. For the first time in Lipstick on the Rim history, a real housewife has entered the studio. And not just any housewife. Rachel Zo, the fashion legend herself. Did we expect styling stories, glam chaos stories from the past decade in a full cat eye at all times? Yes. Did we expect her to open up about divorce, rediscovering herself, joining Housewives with zero prep and what it feels like to finally feel like her again? No. It is vulnerable, iconic, hilarious, and one of our favorite conversations ever. The Real Housewives have officially entered the chat. Listen now.
Released: January 8, 2026
Podcast by Sony Music Entertainment
In this "Side Dish" episode, Jesse Tyler Ferguson hosts actor Ali Larter on the penthouse patio of Mastro’s Steakhouse in Beverly Hills for a candid and warm conversation. They discuss Ali’s starring role in the new Paramount series Landman, her move from Los Angeles to Idaho, the complexities of motherhood while working, the changing landscape of the acting industry, and their shared love of cooking and writing cookbooks. In a signature Dinner’s on Me style, the encouragement of storytelling is matched by laughter, vulnerability, and relatable struggles.
Timestamps: 04:33 – 07:09
Timestamps: 07:09 – 09:47
Timestamps: 09:47 – 11:18
Timestamps: 16:05 – 19:40
Timestamps: 19:41 – 22:08
Timestamps: 22:09 – 23:34
Timestamps: 25:40 – 29:38
Warm, genuine, and humorous—Jesse and Ali engage in an open conversation, blending personal anecdotes, professional insight, and lighthearted exchanges (with the occasional parenting and LA actor war story for flavor). Their shared authenticity and affection for cooking, parenting, and artistic exploration shine throughout.
This episode is a deliciously candid exploration of what it means to create a home, take professional risks, balance parenting with passion projects, and nourish both body and soul. If you enjoy real talk about the industry, family, and food—served with wit and honesty—this is an episode you won’t want to miss.
Next week: Jesse is joined by Eric Stonestreet to reminisce about Modern Family and discuss life beyond the set!