Ariana Grande and Boyfriend Ethan Slater Make Rare Appearance in NYC for Dinner

On Tuesday, Ariana Grande and Ethan Slater made a rare public appearance in New York City, heading to dinner. The couple were photographed descending from their black car, dressed in matching black themselves. Grande was wearing a miniskirt, a fluffy buttoned jacket, and a textured black hat. On her feet were black suede pumps and she had on a pair of glittering statement earrings. Slater was in jeans and a North Face pullover, and black sneakers. He was carrying a cream baseball cap in one hand.

A source told Page Six, “They had dinner with her dad and family at her family’s favorite Italian restaurant.”

The pair met on set while filming the musical adaptation of Wicked, in which Grande plays Glinda and Slater was cast as Boq, a resident of Munchkinland. At the time they met, Grande was married to real estate agent Dalton Gomez, who she has now officially divorced. Slater is split from his estranged wife Lilly Jay, with whom he shares one child.

Though they did not officially begin dating until their past relationships ended, Grande was allegedly told to “take things slower” with Slater in August, according to US Weekly.

“Ariana’s been told it’s too soon to go public with him and to take things slower,” said the insider. “She’s very aware of how she’s perceived by her fans, and she’s trying to be mature. [But] if it were up to her, she’d be seen with him tomorrow.”

Slater is currently performing in the revival of the Broadway play Spamalot, and Grande seemed to be making a sly reference to her beau in a recent Instagram post. In the carousel of photos, she shared a shot of her Christmas decorations.

One of the ornaments she hung was a can of SPAM.

Aimée Lutkin is the weekend editor at ELLE.com. Her writing has appeared in Jezebel, Glamour, Marie Claire and more. Her first book, The Lonely Hunter, will be released by Dial Press in February 2022.