America’s Best Party Hosts Revealed

Who throws the best parties in the country? The people behind The Salonniere, an award-winning site devoted to the art of entertaining, took it upon themselves to answer that vexing question. The site asked more than 1,000 influencers across the country and compiled a confidential list of the responses. The most nominated names were then reviewed by an independent group of social authorities in the cities most represented, and the site’s editorial team compiled The Salonniere 100: A list of the Nation’s 100 Best Party Hosts.

For regulars in the Houston social scene, it’s no surprise who made the list: Becca Cason Thrash, Phoebe Tudor and Lynn Wyatt. These three powerhouse philanthropists throw the best soirées, from intimate dinner parties at home to grand galas at museums, all while raising major funds for causes near and dear to their hearts.

Thrash is toasted from the Bayou City to Mexico City and Paris for raucous to glamorous soirées at her modernist manse with its jaw-dropping glass floor and indoor swimming pool rimmed by a cache of Warhol Marilyn silkscreens.

Tudor, an avid preservationist, frequently opens up her Birdsall Briscoe-designed home in Broadacres (her renovation won a Good Brick Award in 2008) for causes ranging from Rice University benefits to Houston Ballet fêtes and book signings for pedigreed volumes.

International socialite Wyatt defines gracious entertaining in her art-filled River Oaks abode and breaks records when chairing galas.

Texas held an impressive 10 spots on the list. Entertaining capitals New York and Washington, D.C., represented the most names. Some of the most famous honorees include President Barack Obama and First Lady Michelle Obama, Lauren Santo Domingo, Dennis Basso, Leonard Lauder, Allison Sarofim, Lela Rose, and Alex Hitz.

Austin’s top tastemakers: Julie Blakeslee and John Hogg and David Garza (The Salonniere founder Carla McDonald recused herself from the list so that another host could have a spot).

Dallas’ doyennes: Gene Jones, Cindy Rachofsky, Nancy Rogers, and Kimberly Schlegel Whitman.

San Antonio’s most unerring hosting: Alice Carrington Foultz.

Additional reporting by Catherine D. Anspon.