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Bios:
Emeril Lagasse
Biography:
Superchef Emeril Lagasse – who helped lure America back into the
kitchen with his tantalizing fare and stylish preparation – steps
out from behind the cooking counter and into the spotlight faster
than you can say "Bam!" as he virtually stars as himself in the
role of a gregarious host of a cable television cooking show.
Before
he became a national television personality on the Food Network’s
"The Essence of Emeril" and "Emeril Live," Lagasse was born and
raised in Fall River, Massachusetts. He set aside his early goals
of becoming a musician to take command of an equally demanding career
in the culinary arts at the renowned Johnson and Wales University,
from which he received a doctorate degree. He worked at several
excellent restaurants in New York, Boston and Philadelphia before
he was brought south to New Orleans by the owners of the Big Easy’s
legendary restaurant, the Commander’s Palace, where he remained
executive chef for over seven years.
Lagasse eventually opened his own establishment, Emeril’s Restaurant,
in the chic warehouse district of New Orleans and later started
his second, Nola Restaurant, in the historic French Quarter. His
other restaurants include: Emeril’s New Orleans Fish House in Las
Vegas; Delmonico Restaurant and Bar in New Orleans’ Garden District;
Emeril's Restaurant Orlando; and his most recent, Delmonico Steakhouse
in Las Vegas. Emeril’s Restaurant was dubbed Restaurant of the Year
by John Mariani in Esquire magazine in 1990 and recently earned
the prestigious Ivy Award. In 1993, Lagasse was named Best Southeast
Regional Chef by the James Beard Foundation. Nola was feted as Best
New Restaurant in 1993 and Emeril’s Fish House was honored as Best
Restaurant in Las Vegas by Zagat.
Lagasse’s two cable series reach millions of viewers daily. "The
Essence of Emeril" was voted by Time as one of the top-10 television
programs of 1996 while "Emeril Live" garnered a CableACE Award for
Best Informational Series. His duties also include weekly Friday
appearances on "Good Morning America" as a food correspondent as
he shares recipes and anecdotes. In addition, Lagasse has authored
"Emeril's New New Orleans Cooking," "Louisiana Real and Rustic,"
"Emeril’s Creole Christmas," "Emeril's TV Dinners" and "Every Day’s
a Party," all of which have exceeded 2,000,000 in combined sales.
His latest tome, "Prime Time Emeril," is due for publication in
September.
Playing himself will afford Lagasse another creative outlet for
his personality. "It shouldn’t be too difficult," he says. "I play
myself -- passionate about food, cooking and making it all fun.
Life should be fun. This type of show hasn’t been done before and
I’m excited to see the outcome."
In
whatever spare time he can find, Lagasse enjoys collecting wine
and sometimes fantasizes of joining the PGA Tour in his latter years.
His Website, Emerils.com, was
launched in 1998 and draws over 300,000 viewers per month. Lagasse
is married to his wife, Alden, and his birthday is October 15.
Television
Credits:
Emeril as himself
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