My mother's blueberry pie from scratch was amazing. I still make it today..

Determine who you are and what your brand is, and what youre not. The rest of it is just a lot of noise..

The worst day is just that I did not enter the culinary world sooner. And the best day was seeing the reaction of my one year old daughter when she t….

I got killed against Morimoto. I brought out white plates with food; I thought that was really nice. He brings out sculptures of ice, Noah's ark made….

I was shocked when they told me congratulations, you won, that's the good news. Then the bad news is that you have six battles next week. That was a ….

I'll transform anything as long as it's edible..

When you have a chef that wants to be in the spotlight, maybe after one or two appearances on a show, they think they're at a certain level that they….

I always go to the lowest common denominator for that ingredient. So if I think squash, I try to think what it means to me -- and if it doesn't mean ….

I don't enjoy eating humble pie..

I love hospitality, and I love cooking. The kitchen is where I feel most at ease and where I feel most like myself..

A plate of food has to have balance. For example, a mild fish like skate mustnt be overwhelmed by the side dishes. They should have personality and c….

When I step into the kitchen in the morning, I go for the scrambled eggs with pine nuts and minced lamb. When I finish at night, it is hard to resist….

It's so funny. I honestly thought every one of those people on the show could beat anyone at any time anywhere. You just have to have a slightly off ….

The most important things in life happen over conversations while eating..

What we've witnessed in the past 25 or 30 years is just incredible. We've birthed 30,000 or 40,000 restaurants. I used to go to Europe every year to ….

My agent called me and said, they watched you do Chopped Champions and they thought you'd be good for this competition. What do you think? And I said….

I've been working in boutique hotels my whole life..

I don't even look at resumes anymore. I think they're misguided. I talk to them, ask them where they've been, "What's your favorite experience in a r….

Confit is not something that comes to mind for summer. Usually it means duck confit, made by cooking the legs and thighs in duck fat to preserve them….

Chestnuts are my favorite ingredient to use in the fall, especially for the holidays. I always find that they are meaty, hearty and have a mysterious….

I wish that restaurateurs would choose simpler and smaller glassware. The tables on restaurants these days are way too crowded, and mostly because th….