New York was transformed into Tuscany—minus the weather—as Massimo Ferragamo hosted a just-casual-enough dinner at the brand's Fifth Avenue boutique in honor of his men's creative director, Massimiliano Giornetti. It's a busy time for Giornetti—he hosted a fundraiser for survivors of the April L'Aquila earthquake the previous evening, and the Milan menswear shows are a couple of weeks away—but on this night he was intent on injecting some dolce vita into one of the most harried cities on earth.

"Everybody is rushing—working, working a lot—and talking about luxury," the Florence-based designer said, as guests (including Lake Bell and Alek Wek, still sporting a neon orange cast as a result of a recent kitchen injury) filtered into the store's newly redesigned second level. "For me, luxury is about time—the time I spend with my friends, the people I love, doing and making the things that are important in my life," he said. "Everybody is communicating through Facebook, or by messages. I do not believe in that." Ah, old Europe.

Dinner was a trip: Bronson Van Wyck had outfitted the store's terrace with Italian cypress trees and table linens inspired by the frescoes at the Ferragamo palazzo headquarters. Ballet dancer Roberto Bolle, bella figura personified, sat at the head of the table. Truffle-flaked cavatelli pasta, family-style secondi, and basil sorbetto arrived without too much to-do, as Brunello from Ferragamo's Tuscan estate, Castiglion del Bosco, flowed freely. "It's not mandatory, but everybody I know in Tuscany has a winery. It's a duty," Ferragamo explained, before hastening to add: "The 2003 is okay. The 2004 is much better."

— Darrell Hartman