How we gather: Kate Greer on the art of kid-friendly hosting
The founder of Cheerie Lane Popcorn chats about watercolors at the table, vulnerable questions, and her collective of female friendships
How we gather is a series featuring people who are bringing friends together in fun and inspired ways. Guests share ideas, stories, and practical tips to help us find friendship, create community, and gather more intentionally.
Meet Kate Greer, a small-town girl with a big love of hosting. Inspired by her Iowan roots, she founded Cheerie Lane, a beloved brand of popcorn pods made with family-farmed heirloom kernels. When she’s not running Cheerie Lane, you’ll find gathering loved ones and little ones at her San Francisco home—usually over popcorn, of course.
Kate is a well of creativity, warmth, and inspiration—I loved getting to chat with her about the ways she keeps the kiddos entertained, from bringing out the paint sets to turning popcorn cupcakes into a family activity. I found myself *taking notes* on the vulnerable questions she pops when there’s a lull in the conversation and the rituals that banded her female artist friends together. Think you’ll uncover some lovely ideas in here, too!
Teresa Wu: Tell me a bit about yourself and about Cheerie Lane, your popcorn company.
Kate Greer: I’m originally from Iowa. Iowa folks are really good at gathering because it’s such a warm and welcoming place. Everyone’s always bringing baked goods and casseroles over. And it inspired the heart of why we created Cheerie Lane.
Cheerie Lane is named after our farm in my hometown, and my cousin Brad is the farmer and my cofounder. I’d been in New York for many years, and very quickly the fancy things of big cities burn off, and you’re just at the kitchen table with your best friends having wine and popcorn. That was our north star—helping people have that experience. Popcorn has such a nice anticipation and smell that makes you feel at home.
I like to start from the beginning of people’s gathering journeys! When and how did your love for hosting begin?
Iowa inspires my love of hosting—on the Cheerie Lane farm, my grandma was always making pies and popcorn and roasts. People were always popping in and leaving, and there was always this warmth to her kitchen. She did everything with a lot of care, from the apron that she wore to the wallpaper she put up to the flowers that she cut. Those are some of my early memories.
My friend Mia Moretti is such a muse when it comes to gathering. I’ve traveled all over the world with her, and we’ll be in an Airbnb that’s not so great—but she’ll pick the only thing that smells good from the backyard. She’ll make candle holders out of pinecones. She’ll pull the best poetry books off the shelf and use a sheet for a tablecloth. She’s one of those people that really cares about making your experience feel good.
Are there other things or experiences that have influenced the way you gather?
Random, but I have a masters in psychology, and there’s a heuristic about “peak-end experiences.” The point being that in the middle, you need to have this climatic experience that people will go home remembering, and in the end, you finish on a high note. I think about this all the time.
With my girlfriends, I keep a list of the 10 most universally interesting questions. Anytime there’s a lull in our dinner, I’ll drop one of these. By asking them something vulnerable after we’re warmed up, you’ll get these really good stories out of people.
On ending strong: I love having something to give people when they’re walking out the door—I often give people popcorn. I also make mezcal shot glasses. I’m always trying to make sure that people don’t leave empty handed.
Kate Greer’s vulnerable questions:
What’s a childhood story that typifies the person you are today?
What’s the best compliment you’ve ever received?
What’s a belief you held adamantly and then completely changed your mind about? Did a 180?
What are some of your greatest life tools?
What’s one question you wish people would ask you but they would have no idea to ask you that specific question?
What are some of your personal rules or philosophies around gathering?
I like to seed friendships in advance. When you’re around a bunch of kids, you fall into a trap of talking about what school they go to and things like that. I’ll tell two people they’re going to connect ahead of time or bait them with something they can strike up a conversation around that goes beyond small talk.
As someone who doesn’t have kids but has lots of friends with kids, I’d love all the mom advice! What are some of your tips for hosting with kids or having kids over?
Contain people to certain spaces in your home. In SF, I have this patio that works really nicely because a mom’s not going to be relaxed or have fun unless you know the kids are OK. Having them in view but not necessarily on your lap is the dream. And if you’re hosting outside and a child spills something all over, the mom’s less stressed about it.
The other thing I always do—I’m a big painter and always have been. I have a strong belief that kids’ art can be really beautiful. I try to always set out watercolors and watercolor paper so they have an activity. The kids will make watercolor postcards that I steal for thank yous or send to relatives and friends.
What does your go-to menu look like?
We always have a few kinds of cheese—we famously have this very dangerous cheese cutter. Zuni chicken is kid and adult gold. Often you can get away with big bowls of pasta and lasagna, we do a lot of grilled vegetables—we have a big garden that I pick from. For the kids, we’ll put together a popcorn bar, which doubles as an activity.
Iowa inspires my love of hosting—on the Cheerie Lane farm, my grandma was always making pies and popcorn and roasts. People were always popping in and leaving and there was always this warmth to her kitchen. She did everything with a lot of care, from the apron that she wore to the wallpaper she put up to the flowers that she cut. Those are some of my early memories.
How do you put together a popcorn bar?
We’ll set up a bar in the kitchen with toppings: sprinkles, crushed graham crackers, squeeze bottles with chocolate, fruit snacks, Paro's fennel candies, etc. and a cupcake tray with cupcake liners. It’s always fun to give kids choices and have them feel like they’re getting to build their own thing.
We pop a butter popcorn pod as the kids watch so they can see the pod melt and get excited when they hear the first kernel. Once popped, set aside in a bowl to cool while you melt a tablespoon more of butter and a bit of honey or maple syrup in the hot pan. Pour over the popcorn and mix in—this provides a slight adherence without becoming a sticky mess! Fill the cupcake liners and let the kids start topping.
We'll let them set as we go outside to the patio for a nice lunch with a view of the Golden Gate, and I'll bring the popcorn cupcakes out for dessert! We also use lemons from the yard to make our own fresh lemonade.
Such a fun idea! That sounds like a magical afternoon. Do you have a hosting uniform or outfit you gravitate to?
I used to wear, like, white silk or a tight 50s jean, but now my post-kids hosting uniform is all about sets—it’s an easy way to look put together. I love Rachel Comey’s sets in particular. I’m a huge fan of color, pattern, even lamé, anything that’s texturally interesting. I like to delight my children and love getting called a cool auntie.
Tell me about Chez Conversations, your collective of five female artist friends. How has gathering helped you build friendship and community?
In high school, I probably would have been voted “most likely to get outta Dodge”—it wasn’t until a few years into New York that I felt like I met my people.