Social media has introduced audiences to many talented creators but only a few manage to make people feel as if they are part of their family. Barbara Costello, popularly known as Babs Costello or Brunch with Babs (@brunchwithbabs), is one of those personalities
She has become a familiar face for millions of people who enjoy practical cooking advice, household tips, cleaning tricks and simple family traditions.
Babs is widely recognised for her friendly personality and her signature greeting, “Hi, everybody, it’s Babs!”
Her videos often feature easy recipes, kitchen shortcuts, hosting advice and everyday solutions that make household tasks less stressful.
She has written cookbooks, appeared on television programmes and built a business around her experience with cooking and homemaking.
Her books include Celebrate with Babs, Every Day with Babs and Homemaking with Babs.
She has also introduced a children’s book that focuses on familiar sayings and family conversations.
At a time when social media trends change quickly, Babs has found success by sharing something timeless: practical knowledge passed from one generation to another.
So, who is Babs Costello? How old is she? What did she do before becoming famous? Who are her family members? And how did Brunch with Babs become such a popular online platform?
Here is everything to know about Babs Costello and her journey from educator to internet personality.
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Table of Contents
Who Is Babs Costello?
Barbara Costello is an American social media personality, cookbook author and former educator. She is better known online as Babs or Brunch with Babs.1
She became popular through her TikTok and Instagram accounts, where she shares cooking demonstrations, household advice, cleaning methods, gardening suggestions and family-oriented content.
Her approach is different from that of many traditional lifestyle influencers. She does not depend on expensive products or complicated instructions to attract viewers.
Instead, she focuses on useful information that people can apply in their everyday lives. Her videos often cover subjects that many households deal with regularly.
These include preparing quick dinners, organising kitchens, cleaning household items, storing food and planning family gatherings. Babs also shares advice about hosting guests and making special occasions more enjoyable.
Her content is designed for people who want practical solutions rather than unrealistic ideas about maintaining a perfect home. According to her publisher, Penguin Random House, Costello is a mother of four and grandmother of nine.
She is also the author of several bestselling lifestyle and cooking books. Her television appearances include programmes such as Today, Good Morning America and The Drew Barrymore Show.
Her warm personality has earned her a reputation as one of the internet’s favourite grandmother figures.
‘Grandfluencer’ Barbara Costello on becoming a social media sensation with ‘Brunch with Babs’ https://t.co/Rd80L5e0wu
— WGN Radio 720 (@WGNRadio) September 10, 2021
Early Life and Education
Babs Costello grew up on the west side of Chicago. Her early life played an important role in developing the practical approach that audiences now recognise in her videos.
She grew up in a family environment where traditional cooking and resourcefulness were important. Her grandmother was particularly influential in shaping her understanding of household management.
Her grandmother had immigrated to the United States from Italy. She belonged to a generation that understood how to make the most of limited resources.
Rather than purchasing a separate product for every household problem, she found different uses for ordinary ingredients and items already available at home. Baking soda, for example, was used for several household purposes.
It could be useful in gardening, cleaning and other everyday tasks. Babs learned by watching how her grandmother managed a home without wasting money.
Her mother also influenced her interest in food. According to an interview with Food Network, Babs learned much of her cooking knowledge from her mother, who was an intuitive cook and careful baker.
These family experiences eventually became an important foundation for Brunch with Babs. Costello later attended Marquette University.
She studied English and completed a minor in Education. Her university experience helped develop the communication and teaching skills that would become useful throughout her professional life.
Her education also provided a foundation for her career as a teacher.
Stats Table
| Category | Details |
|---|---|
| Full Name | Barbara Costello |
| Popular Name | Babs Costello |
| Online Name | Brunch with Babs |
| Profession | Social media creator, author and former educator |
| Nationality | American |
| Age | 78 years (2026) |
| Birth Year | 1948 |
| Hometown | Chicago, Illinois, USA |
| Education | Marquette University |
| Degree | English, with a minor in Education |
| Marital Status | Married |
| Husband | Bill Costello, known as Mr. Babs |
| Children | Four |
| Grandchildren | Nine |
| Famous For | Cooking tips, household advice and family content |
| TikTok | @brunchwithbabs |
| @brunchwithbabs | |
| First Viral Content | Family recipe video in April 2020 |
| First Cookbook | Celebrate with Babs |
| Other Books | Every Day with Babs, Homemaking with Babs and Did Your Mother Ever Tell You? |
| Latest Major Book | Homemaking with Babs (2026) |
Babs Career Before Social Media Fame
Before becoming an internet personality, Babs spent many years working in education.2
She worked as a middle school teacher before moving into early childhood education. She eventually established a preschool called The Growing Tree in Connecticut. She ran and directed the preschool for almost 25 years.
This experience helped her develop the communication skills and patience that are now visible in her videos. Teaching young children requires energy, clear explanations and the ability to make information interesting.
Those same qualities helped her connect with social media audiences. Her years in education also influenced her approach to sharing knowledge.
She does not simply demonstrate a recipe or household trick. She explains what she is doing and why it can be useful.
Her career before social media is an important part of understanding her success. She did not suddenly develop a new personality when she started creating videos.
Instead, she brought decades of teaching and family experience to a new platform.
How Did Brunch with Babs Become Famous?
Babs began creating TikTok content in April 2020 during the COVID-19 pandemic. At that time, she was helping her daughter Elizabeth Ariola with childcare.
Her daughter suggested that she make a video sharing one of her family recipes. Initially, Babs was not particularly interested in joining social media.
She had not been an active user of platforms such as TikTok and did not imagine becoming an online personality. She also associated TikTok with dance videos.
Her daughter had a different idea. She believed that Babs’ cooking knowledge and engaging personality could appeal to viewers.
The first video featured her grandmother’s Greek chicken and potatoes recipe. It attracted more than 100,000 views and introduced her to an audience far beyond her immediate family.
The response encouraged Babs and her daughter to continue creating content. As more people discovered her videos, viewers began commenting on her warm personality.
Many said she reminded them of their own mothers or grandmothers. That emotional connection became a major part of the Brunch with Babs identity.
Her popularity was not built around one viral recipe alone. She continued sharing useful ideas and gradually developed a collection of content covering food, cleaning, gardening and family life.
Her daughter Elizabeth also became an important part of the business. She helped with filming, photography and the management of the growing online brand.
Babs’ journey shows how a simple family project can develop into a successful career when the content connects with people’s everyday needs.
What Kind of Content Does Babs Share?
Brunch with Babs covers several areas of everyday living. Her content is particularly useful for people who enjoy cooking and want to make their homes more organised.
1. Easy Cooking Recipes
Cooking is one of the most important parts of her online identity. Babs shares recipes that are designed to be manageable for ordinary households.
Her food content includes family dinners, baked dishes, desserts, breakfast ideas and meals for special occasions. She often explains the steps in a conversational way so that viewers can follow along without feeling overwhelmed.
Her approach focuses on making home cooking enjoyable rather than turning it into a complicated task.
2. Kitchen Tips and Food Storage
Another popular category is practical kitchen advice. Babs shares suggestions about storing ingredients, preparing meals in advance and avoiding unnecessary food waste.
Her tips often focus on small details that can make a noticeable difference. These include handling fresh ingredients properly and organising food so that everyday cooking becomes easier.
3. Cleaning and Household Hacks
Babs is also known for sharing cleaning and homemaking advice. Her videos cover everyday household problems and demonstrate ways to manage them with simple methods.
She has discussed topics such as cleaning kitchen equipment, maintaining household surfaces and organising different areas of a home.
Her approach often reflects the resourcefulness she learned from her grandmother.
4. Gardening Advice
Gardening is another interest that appears in her content. Babs shares suggestions about caring for plants and making use of ordinary household resources.
Her advice reflects the traditional knowledge she learned from older generations.
5. Hosting and Family Traditions
Babs also enjoys helping people prepare for celebrations. Her hosting advice includes organising meals, planning gatherings and creating welcoming environments for family and friends.
This subject connects naturally with her first cookbook, which focuses on holiday recipes and family traditions.
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Babs Costello’s Books and Publications
Babs has successfully turned her online popularity into a publishing career. Her books allow readers to explore her recipes and household advice in more detail.3
Celebrate with Babs (2022)
Celebrate with Babs: Holiday Recipes & Family Traditions was her first cookbook. It was published in April 2022.
The book focuses on celebrations throughout the year. It includes recipes, menu ideas and suggestions for making family occasions memorable.
Rather than focusing only on cooking, Babs also shares the traditions and planning ideas that make holidays special.
The book reflects her belief that food brings people together.
Every Day with Babs (2025)
Her second major cookbook, Every Day with Babs, was published on April 8, 2025. It features 101 family-friendly dinner recipes designed to make everyday cooking easier.
The book covers different approaches to preparing meals and includes ideas for busy households. Some of its recipes include chicken cutlets, pasta dishes and easy family dinners.
The main idea is to help readers answer a familiar question: What should we make for dinner?
Did Your Mother Ever Tell You? (2026)
Babs also expanded into children’s publishing with Did Your Mother Ever Tell You?
The book explores familiar sayings and expressions that parents and grandparents often share with younger generations. It uses these phrases to encourage conversations about their meanings and the values behind them.
This project reflects another important part of her personality: her interest in passing family wisdom to younger generations.
Homemaking with Babs (2026)
Homemaking with Babs: Tips and Tricks for Making a House a Home was published on September 1, 2026, by Clarkson Potter. The book focuses on maintaining a home without making everyday responsibilities feel overwhelming.
It includes advice on seasonal cleaning, household organisation, maintenance and natural cleaning solutions. It also provides practical checklists and ideas for involving family members in household responsibilities.
The book is particularly relevant to the audience that made Brunch with Babs popular. It brings together many of the practical ideas that she has shared through social media.
Together, these publications show how Babs has developed from a cooking-video creator into a recognised lifestyle author.
Babs Costello’s Family and Personal Life
Family is one of the most important parts of Babs Costello’s public identity. She is married to Bill Costello, affectionately known online as Mr. Babs.
The couple has four children and nine grandchildren. Although Babs shares many aspects of her lifestyle online, she does not make every part of her family’s private life public.
Her content generally focuses on family traditions, cooking and everyday experiences rather than personal controversies.
Her daughter Elizabeth Ariola has played a significant role in her professional journey. She encouraged Babs to create her first TikTok video and later helped develop the Brunch with Babs brand.
Their working relationship is an example of how different generations can collaborate successfully. Babs brings years of experience and practical knowledge, while Elizabeth contributes digital media skills and an understanding of online audiences.
The family connection also helps explain why her videos feel natural. Her content often resembles advice shared between relatives rather than a traditional commercial presentation.
The Basket House: A New Chapter in Her Life
One of the interesting developments in Babs’ recent career is her involvement in renovating an old cottage known as the Basket House. The historic property in Connecticut has become an important part of her lifestyle content.
Babs and her husband worked on the house and turned it into a welcoming home that also provides a setting for her online videos. The property reflects her interest in traditional homemaking and practical design.
Her followers can see how she approaches decorating, organising and maintaining a home. The renovation project also provides new opportunities to share household advice.
This project represents another stage in her career. She is no longer limited to cooking demonstrations and short cleaning videos.
She can now share a wider range of lifestyle ideas through a real home project.
Why Is Babs Costello So Popular?
There are several reasons behind Babs’ popularity.
Relatable advice
Her content focuses on everyday problems. Viewers can try many of her ideas without purchasing expensive equipment or learning complicated techniques.
A friendly personality
Her welcoming presentation makes viewers feel comfortable. She explains things with enthusiasm without making people feel inexperienced.
Generational knowledge
Many of her ideas come from family traditions. Her grandmother’s resourcefulness and her mother’s cooking skills have influenced her approach.
Useful information
Her videos often provide solutions to practical problems. People can save them and return to the advice when needed.
A positive online environment
Babs generally focuses on encouraging and helpful content. Her videos offer a break from the arguments and negativity that can dominate social media.
A genuine personal story
Her rise to fame in her seventies challenges the idea that successful online careers are only possible for younger people.
Her popularity is also connected to the timing of her arrival on TikTok. During the pandemic, many people were separated from family members.
Her warm and grandmotherly approach offered a sense of familiarity and comfort.
Television Appearances and Growing Recognition
Babs’ popularity eventually attracted attention from mainstream media. She has appeared on well-known American television programmes, including Today, Good Morning America and The Drew Barrymore Show.
These appearances have helped introduce her to viewers who may not regularly use TikTok or Instagram. Her television segments often focus on cooking, seasonal celebrations and practical household advice.
She has also worked with commercial brands and expanded her presence beyond social media. Her success demonstrates how digital creators can develop opportunities in traditional publishing and television.
A creator who starts with short videos can eventually reach audiences through books, interviews and other media platforms.
What Makes Brunch with Babs Different From Other Lifestyle Creators?
Many lifestyle creators focus on perfect kitchens, expensive decorations and elaborate recipes. Babs takes a more practical approach.
She does not suggest that every household needs to look perfect. Instead, she encourages people to find methods that work for their own circumstances.
Her philosophy is particularly visible in her household advice. She shares small improvements that can make daily responsibilities easier.
She also understands that people have different levels of experience. Someone who has never prepared a particular dish should be able to follow her instructions without feeling embarrassed.
That accessibility is an important part of her brand. Her content also appeals to different age groups.
Older viewers may recognise the traditions and methods she discusses, while younger viewers can learn household skills that they may not have encountered before.
In this way, Brunch with Babs has become more than a cooking account. It is a digital space where practical knowledge is shared across generations.
Babs Costello’s Influence on Social Media
Babs has become an example of how creators can build an online following without depending on celebrity status or a background in entertainment. Her story is especially meaningful because she started posting videos at around 72 years old.
She entered an environment that was largely associated with younger users. However, she did not try to copy their style.
She focused on her own strengths. Her experience as a teacher helped her explain information clearly.
Her family background provided a steady supply of recipes and traditions. Her personality made the videos enjoyable to watch.
According to AARP’s recent profile, her social media audience extends across TikTok, Instagram, Facebook and YouTube. The same profile highlights how she has developed a following among people of different generations.
Her career also challenges stereotypes about ageing and technology. It shows that learning new digital skills and building a new professional identity are possible at almost any stage of life.
What Is Next for Babs Costello?
Babs continues to expand her work through books, household projects and social media content. Her 2026 book Homemaking with Babs is a major development because it brings her household advice together in a comprehensive guide.
Her children’s book also gives her an opportunity to reach younger readers and introduce them to familiar family expressions.
The Basket House project offers another area of creative development. It allows her to share home improvement and decorating ideas while continuing to connect with her existing audience.
Rather than moving away from the content that made her famous, Babs appears to be building on it.
Her central message remains consistent: everyday life becomes easier when people share knowledge, stay organised and make time for family.
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FAQ’s
1. Who is Babs Costello?
Babs Costello is an American social media personality and cookbook author. She is best known for her Brunch with Babs accounts, where she shares cooking recipes, household advice, cleaning tips and family traditions.
2. What is Babs Costello’s real name?
Her real name is Barbara Costello. She is popularly known as Babs or Brunch with Babs on social media.
3. How old is Babs Costello?
Babs Costello is 78 years old in 2026, according to recent published profiles.
4. Where is Babs Costello from?
She grew up on the west side of Chicago, Illinois, in the United States. She later settled in Connecticut with her family.
5. Is Babs Costello married?
Yes. She is married to Bill Costello, who is affectionately known as Mr. Babs in her online content.
Conclusion
Babs Costello’s journey is an inspiring example of how experience and practical knowledge can create new opportunities at any age.
What makes Babs particularly interesting is that she did not follow the usual path to internet fame. She started creating content in her seventies and showed that useful knowledge does not lose its value with age.
Today, Brunch with Babs is more than a popular social media account. It represents a welcoming community built around food, family and everyday living.
Her story continues to encourage people to share what they know, learn new skills and enjoy the simple moments that make a house feel like home.
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