Emeril Lagasse is an American chef, restaurateur, television personality, cookbook author, and philanthropist whose cooking helped define modern New Orleans cuisine.
Born in Fall River, Massachusetts, Lagasse graduated from Johnson & Wales University in 1978. After beginning his professional career in New England, he moved to New Orleans and succeeded Paul Prudhomme as executive chef of Commander’s Palace in 1982. He led the kitchen for more than seven years before opening his flagship restaurant, Emeril’s, in the Warehouse District in 1990.
At Emeril’s, Lagasse developed the cooking he called “New New Orleans,” drawing on Creole and Cajun traditions as well as his classical training and Portuguese heritage. The restaurant was named Restaurant of the Year by Esquire shortly after opening, and Lagasse received the James Beard Award for Best Southeast Regional Chef in 1991. His restaurant group later expanded to additional properties in New Orleans, Las Vegas, Florida, and aboard Carnival Cruise Line ships.
Lagasse became one of America’s most recognizable chefs through Food Network programs including Essence of Emeril and Emeril Live. Over his television career, he has hosted more than 2,000 episodes and appeared as a correspondent, competition judge, and series host. Eat the World with Emeril Lagasse won a Daytime Emmy Award for Outstanding Culinary Program. He is also the author of 19 cookbooks, including Emeril’s New New Orleans Cooking and Essential Emeril.
In 2002, Lagasse and his wife, Alden, established the Emeril Lagasse Foundation. The organization supports culinary education, nutrition programs, and life-skills training for young people and has distributed more than $20 million in grants. The James Beard Foundation named him Humanitarian of the Year in 2013.
Lagasse remains involved with his restaurants and serves as chief culinary officer for Carnival Cruise Line. At Emeril’s, he works alongside his son, E.J., who now leads the flagship’s kitchen and daily operations.
