Ina Garten’s ‘Be My Guest’ Features Some TBA Celebs—And I Have a Strong Theory About Who They’ll Be

Fellow Ina Garten devotees will remember the 2008 episode of Barefoot Contessa, “Cooking for a Crowd,” in which she hosts a dinner party for the cast of Broadway’s Young Frankenstein. The meal ends on a theatrical note, with Garten’s guests serenading her: Nothing could be finer than to eat a meal with Ina in the HAAAMPTONS!

That sentiment holds true, or at least I’d imagine. To eat a meal with Ina is to be invited into her innermost circle, and her current TV run, Be My Guest, plays on that concept. To date, she’s invited not just old friends (like restauranteur Danny Meyer and actor Nathan Lane), but new ones: actor Emily Blunt, ballerina Misty Copeland, musician Norah Jones, to name a few. And the latest guest list for the upcoming season of her show (set to premiere in fall 2024) has me theorizing—who will she invite next? Here’s what I think.

Per Variety, Garten has signed a multi-year deal with Food Network that includes a new season of Be My Guest. On the roster to join her? Julia Louis-Dreyfus; Stephen Colbert and his wife, Evie McGee Colbert; and fellow Food Network star Bobby Flay, with more guests yet to be revealed.

Do you see the pattern I’m seeing? Julia Louis-Dreyfus, who just hosted Ina on her podcast, Wiser Than Me. Stephen Colbert, who has brought Ina onto his late-night show more times than I can count (remember when she recreated the big cosmo?). Bobby Flay, who…well, he’s Bobby Flay.

Ms. Garten is smart—she worked in the White House, after all—and my theory is that these guests are all people whom she’s interacted with before. So, I’m officially taking bets on who’s next. Here are my top three picks:

1. Tina Fey 

30 Rock may have ended in 2013, but no one can forget when Garten had a cameo and made Liz Lemon’s dreams come true. (Not for nothing, I also witnessed Fey moderate a talk with Garten at the Brooklyn Academy of Music in 2016.) Plus, depending on timing, Fey may be starting promotion for her new Netflix series, The Four Seasons. 

2. Seth Meyers

Remember when they got drunk together on Late Night with Seth Meyers? These two have a storied history.

3. Taylor Swift

This woman loves an Easter egg, and I won’t forget those selfies.

These are the plausible pals, the ones who fit the theme: You have a comedian, a talk show host, a musician. No one too out of the ordinary. And although you didn’t ask for my dream guest rotation, my head would simply spin off if Garten brought on her mentor and lifestyle legend Martha Stewart. A gal can dream.