Inside The Zoe Report's Golden-Hour Dinner With Rachel Zoe

As the sun dipped low casting an amber glow over Montauk, Rachel Zoe, The Zoe Report founder and essie’s first ever US Chief Color Director, hosted an evening that felt like a love letter to summer itself. Set against the sweeping deck of The Surf Lodge, the night unfolded with all the chic details (and lots of style) to celebrate essie's new Glass Nails collection.

The evening kicked off with Diplo spinning on the deck as guests mingled against the backdrop of the ocean, golden light catching every reflective surface. It was the perfect prelude to what would follow: an intimate dinner where essie polishes were not just present, but the literal conversation piece.

A Mood Board-Worthy Tablescape

Guests were welcomed with a photo op at the entrance framed by custom surfboards before making their way to a tablescape dreamed up in the exact palette of essie's Glass Nails collection. Bespoke essie fans dotted every VIP table and lined the deck, offering both a stylish flourish and a practical nod to the summer heat. But the true showstopper came in the form of the 3D ice sculptures that graced the tables: sleek, translucent blocks in which essie's polishes and a single flower frozen mid-bloom were suspended as if floating in the air. Equal parts art installation and centerpiece, they turned every tabletop into a genuinely arresting, photo-ready moment.

Dinner leaned into the easy, elevated energy of a Montauk summer. Guests started with a spread of hummus, market crudité, tuna wonton tacos and green salads, before choosing their mains. The cocktail menu told its own essie story, inspired directly by the collection’s iconic shades including The Full Blown Margarita, the Cin Cin Spritz, and The Highballer — each one a sippable homage to the polishes guests would later be gifted.

Shades In Every Detail

As Zoe’s guests mingled, essie was integrated into the fabric of the night. Each guest had personalized name plates in the polish colors, products were given to all hotel guests via room drops, and the hues echoed throughout the dinner set up, tying each detail of the celebration back to the Glass Nails collection.

By the time the last golden light faded into a Montauk blue, Zoe and her guests had taken to the dance floor, capping off a night that celebrated the effortless color of summer on the East End — one polished detail at a time.