Hilary Duff sat on Matthew Koma’s lap while the couple waited for a table at Great White in Studio City, California, on April 20. Koma wrapped both arms around Duff’s waist and kissed her on the shoulder as they held court outside the Australian-style restaurant, which is known for its smoked salmon pizza.
Duff, 38, wore shredded denim shorts and flip-flop sandals for the outing and carried a water bottle, an iPhone and a large black purse. The casual date night landed as Duff is in the middle of a packed run of public appearances and career milestones, with a commencement speech at Northeastern University set for April 29 at 4pm, three sold-out nights at Voltaire at The Venetian Resort Las Vegas from May 22 to May 24, and the start of her first world tour in nearly 20 years on June 21 in West Palm Beach, Florida.
Great White opened in Studio City on January 31 after the success of its Larchmont and West Hollywood locations, and the scene fit the easygoing, family-centered image Duff has cultivated with Koma. She met him in 2013 while collaborating on her fifth studio album, Breathe In. Breathe Out., though they did not begin dating until 2017. The two now share three daughters — Banks, 7, Mae, 5, and Townes, 2 — and Duff is also mother to 14-year-old son Luca Comrie.
The dinner came just weeks after Duff reflected on the practical side of touring during an April 1 appearance on Las Culturistas, where she said Koma and her tour manager interrupted rehearsals to surprise her with a bus she initially assumed would house the group for eight weeks in the summer. Instead, she said, it had no kitchen, only slots for beds and even a written rule against pooping on the bus. That kind of candor has helped frame Duff’s return to the road as something more grounded than a nostalgia play.
Last week, Duff also appeared on TIME’s list of the 100 Most Influential People, with Nicole Richie writing the essay for her entry. Richie described Duff as someone who lives in “that rare space of both nostalgia and now,” adding that she “built a family, a career, and an overall rhythm that is expansive and authentic.” The recognition and the tour plans point in the same direction: Duff is not just revisiting an earlier era of her career. She is entering a busier one, with family life, public honors and a 57-date trek all landing at once.
