10 Most Famous Chefs on TV

Nowadays, one of the most popular topics on television is cooking. There are so many famous chefs on tv people love to watch. Some shows have become so popular that people have been remembered them for years. The famous chefs play an essential role in making a program popular on TV. Here, we are presenting the list of the most famous chefs on TV. We have prepared this list based on the popularity of their shows, data from some leading websites, and the audience’s feedback.

The Most Famous Chefs on TV

We want to mention that the chefs on our list are not necessarily the best in the international culinary industry. Instead, we have considered the popularity of making this list of the most famous chefs on TV.

1. Gordon Ramsay

Who doesn’t hear the name of Gordon Ramsay? Currently, Mr Ramsay is one of the most famous chefs on TV and all over the internet. His global restaurant group, Gordon Ramsay Restaurants, has been awarded 16 Michelin stars in total and currently holds a total of seven. Ramsay had become one of the most influential chefs in the UK by 2004 for his TV series Ramsay’s Boiling Point. Unemotional, fiery temper and frequent profanity are the best descriptions of his character on television shows. His famous TV shows are Hell’s Kitchen, Ramsay’s Kitchen Nightmares,  MasterChef, Hotel Hell, The F Word, etc. Queen Elizabeth II appointed him as Officer of the Order of the British Empire in the 2006 New Year Honours list for services to the hospitality industry. He also won the Catey award for “Independent Restaurateur of the Year” in 2006. Till now, only three persons have won 3 Catey awards. In 2020, his earning was 70 million dollars, according to Forbes.

2. Guy Fieri

When Guy Fieri was ten years old, he started selling soft pretzels from a three-wheeled bicycle cart and washing dishes to finance his study French. But today, he is one of the world’s most famous chefs and TV hosts. According to The New York Times report in 2010, he was the face of New York for his famous shows on TV. He is also known for introducing an element of rowdy, mass-market culture to American food television. He established his first restaurant, ‘California Pasta Grill’ with a business partner in Santa Rosa, a famous city of California. Currently, he owns at least 17 active restaurants. He hosted many famous shows on TV. In particular, Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives, Ultimate Recipe Showdown, Guy Off the Hook are most notable. Guy’s Family Road Trip is one of his most successful series.

3. Emeril Lagasse

Chef Emeril Lagasse was born in Fall River, Massachusetts, in the United States. He mastered the art of bread and pastry baking in his teens while working at a Portuguese bakery. Emeril received a degree from Johnson and Wales University and also an honorary doctorate from the same university. In 1979 he became Executive Chef at the Dunfey’s Hyannis Resort. In 1983 he was nominated for the chef of the year. Emeril Lagasse hosted several popular shows on television. How to Boil Water, Essence of Emeril, Emeril Green, The Emeril Lagasse Show, Hallmark Channel were extremely popular.  Emeril Lagasse creates opportunities for children, especially those from disadvantaged circumstances, through his nonprofit organization, The Emeril Lagasse Foundation. This foundation has distributed more than $6 million in grants for children’s charities.

4. Rachael Ray

American celebrity cook Rachael Ray was born on August 25, 1968, in Glens Falls, New York. She is also a businesswoman, author, and host of reality shows and lifestyle programs. However, Rachael makes on our list because of her highly famous cooking series 30 Minute Meals on the food network. She also hosted famous shows like  Rachael Ray’s Tasty Travels, $40 a Day, Rachael Ray’s Week in a Day, Rachael vs. Guy: Celebrity Cook-Off, and Rachael Ray’s Kids Cook-Off. Furthermore, Rachael Ray is the author of several famous books and magazines such as 30 Minute Meals concept and  Every Day with Rachael Ray. She is the winner of three Daytime Emmy Awards.

5. Ree Drummond

Ree Drummond, the star in her television program The Pioneer Woman on The Food Network, is also a blogger, author, food writer, and photographer. She was born on January 6, 1969, in the oil town of Bartlesville, Oklahoma. Ree started her career as a blogger using the subdomain pioneerwoman.typepad.com. Later, she registered her own domain pioneerwoman.com on October 18, 2006. Her cooking journey also started from her blog. In April 2008, Drummond received 5000+ responses in a giveaway contest on her blog. After that, she built an online food community-based website TastyKitchen.com and today; she is one of the most famous food show hosts on TV.

6. Rick Bayless

America’s one of the famous chefs and restaurateurs, Rick Bayless, is widely popular for his famous PBS series Mexico: One Plate at a Time, along with some TV shows. He was born on November 23, 1953, in Oklahoma City, U.S. state of Oklahoma. Authentic Mexican: Regional Cooking from the Heart of Mexico is the most outstanding work of Rick. He dedicated over six years to culinary research in Mexico for this publication. Mexican Kitchen and Fiesta at Rick’s also became famous worldwide. Bayless and his show Mexico: One Plate at a Time has been nominated for several Daytime Emmy Awards over the years. Rick’s first restaurant was Frontera Grill which he jointly started with his wife, Deann. But today, he owns more than 12 restaurants all around the world. On May 19, 2010, Rick Bayless was invited as a guest chef for the White House state dinner honouring Mexican President Felipe Calderón and his wife, Margarita Zavala.

7. Sunny Anderson

Sunny Anderson is mainly known for her famous TV shows- How’d That Get On My Plate, Cooking for Real, and Gotta Get It. She was born in Lawton, Oklahoma. Anderson’s parents were in the Army, allowing her to travel and indulge in the local cuisine. Anderson served the United States Air Force from 1993 to 1997. After that, she settled in New York and worked as a radio personality. In 2005, Anderson first appeared on the Emeril Live program as a guest hosted by Food Network.

8. Cat Cora

One of the world-renowned chefs, Cat Cora, is famous mainly for her featured role on TV as an “Iron Chef” on Iron Chef America. She is also an author, restaurateur, contributing editor, television host and personality, avid philanthropist, health and fitness expert, and lifestyle entrepreneur. Cora was born in Jackson, Mississippi. At the age of 15, she brought a business plan to her father and grandfather, who were restaurateurs. Debuting on TV in 1993 as a co-host of Melting Pot with Rocco Di Spirito, Cora appeared in several famous food programs on television. Greece, Date Plate, Fine Living’s Simplify Your Life, Kitchen Accomplished, Around the World in 80 Plates, My Kitchen Rules are some of her special TV shows. She is also the author of several best-selling books. Cooking as Fast as I Can: A Chef’s Story of Family, Food, and Forgiveness, Cat Cora’s Classics with a Twist: Fresh Takes on Favorite Dishes, Cooking From the Hip: Fast, Easy, Phenomenal Meals are the most famous books of her.

9. Matt Basile

Canadian chef Matt Basile became famous when he started a TV show called Rebel Without a Kitchen. He is also the creator of Fidel Gastro’s – a street food company. Matt also hosts famous cooking shows on YouTube; some are Chefs in Cars Getting Takeout, Date Night with Grandma, YAAAA Brunch, etc. He jointly writes two cookbooks named Street Food Diaries and Brunch Life with his friend Kyla Zanardi. Matt was nominated for a coveted Canadian Screen Award for Best Host of a Canadian Reality Series in 2015.

10. Bobby Flay

No list of famous chefs on TV will be complete without the name of Bobby Flay. He was fascinated by cooking from his childhood. He asked for an Easy-Bake Oven for Christmas when he was only eight. Bobby was a pizza parlour and Baskin-Robbins when he started his first job. But today, he wons restaurants in 11 different locations all around the world. Two of his most popular restaurants are Amalfi in Las Vegas and Bobby’s Burger Palace at multiple locations. Bobby is also a famous television personality. His popular shows include Hot Off the Grill with Bobby Flay, Grillin’ & Chillin, Food Nation, 3 Days to Open with Bobby Flay, BBQ with Bobby Flay, etc.

Summary: Famous Chefs on TV

On the contrary, our list of 10 famous chefs on TV has been made based on the popularity of the chefs and their shows. You can let us know who is your favourite one from our list. Also, you are welcome to express your opinion to add or remove any name from our list. However, you can also see some new chefs on the list in future, as we will update.