Internationally known chef, Michelin-starred restaurateur, cookbook author, former winner of Food Network's Iron Chef (Season 4), expert judge on Chopped and star on the network's popular culinary chat show The Kitchen since its 2014 premiere, Geoffrey Zakarian is no stranger to Food Network fans and followers. He is one of the featured experts on The Kitchen — in which a panel of the network's food experts gather to share fascinating stories, ideas, conversation and recipes. His humor, enthusiasm, cooking knowledge and creativity are all significant elements of what has made the show so appealing and enduring.

History and Background

Geoffrey was born in Worcester, Massachusetts, to immigrant parents. His father was Armenian-American, and his mother Polish-American. His father was musician George Zakarian, who performed throughout New England in a number of orchestras and in his own dance band and who, over the span of his career, played for former President John F. Kennedy, Johnny Carson, Bob Hope and Tony Bennett, among others.

Now a globally known fixture in the world of gastronomy, Geoffrey's origin story has humble beginnings but one that instilled in him a lifelong quest for excellence and elegant simplicity. "We were poor, but we were rich in things I didn’t realize at the time," Zakarian said in a profile published on Carissimi.com. "My mother made everything from scratch — yogurt, canned food, you name it. She worked with not-so-good products and made something wonderful. There was always a lot of love and care in it."

In fact, Geoffrey says he doesn't remember even eating out at a restaurant until in his early teens, as the cooking and dining experiences he had in his home were so all-encompassing and unique. It was those experiences that solidified what would eventually become his overarching culinary philosophy, one based on the notion that great food didn’t need to be complicated; it needed to be honest. "You can’t hide behind simple," he says. "When you eat food made with love, you know it. You feel it."

Family Life

Geoffrey has three kids — two daughters and a son — and has been married to Margaret Anne Williams since 2005. He currently lives in New York City.

Education and Early Career

Geoffrey earned his college degree in economics from Worcester State University before embarking on a trip to France. It was that trip that would change his outlook and his life forever, leading ultimately to his lifelong immersion in the world of fine cuisine. He was impressed by the culture and outlook of the French people. "I resonated with how they cared about food — the flavor, the taste, the simplicity,” he told Carissimi. "Their devotion to eating, to sitting down and cherishing a meal … It was like a light went off in my head. It felt like home.”

After spending a year in France and embarking on a self-styled mission to visit every three-Michelin-starred restaurant across the country (and in fact dining at 18 of the 21), Geoffrey returned to America knowing precisely what he wanted to do. When he told his parents that his newfound ambition was to become a professional chef, they were less than enthusiastic. Despite his parents' misgivings, Geoffrey enrolled in the Culinary Institute of America, widely considered to be "the Harvard of culinary schools."

Once he graduated from CIA, Geoffrey zeroed in on one iconic Manhattan restaurant — the fabled Le Cirque. Wanting to learn from the best, he literally knocked on the back door of the restaurant's kitchen and told the executive chef there that he was willing to work for them for free. He started work there the next day and, after four years, had worked his way up to chef de cuisine under chefs Alain Sailhac and Daniel Boulud.

Top-Tier Restaurant Credentials

Once he had distinguished himself at Le Cirque, Geoffrey's reputation as a premier chef was off and running. Over the next phase of his burgeoning career, he served as executive chef at New York's famed 21 Club, as well as at 44 at the Royalton Hotel, where he gained recognition and praise from the New York Times.

During the 1990s, he also worked at The Blue Door at Delano Hotel in Miami and then as executive chef at Patroon in Manhattan, awarded a three-star rating by the New York Times. He later worked with celebrated French chef Alain Passard at the three-Michelin-starred Arpège in Paris.

Other noteworthy restaurants in Zakarian's résumé include Au Quai des Ormes in Paris, Aubèrge de l’Ill in Alsace, The Dorchester in London and Le Chantecler in Nice and Lyon.

Geoffrey's Restaurants

In 2001, Zakarian entered the next phase of his career, opening his first restaurant venture, Town, located at The Chambers Hotel in New York City. Town was an immediate success, earning a number of awards, including a coveted three-star rating from the New York Times. Geoffrey followed that success with his second restaurant, Country, which opened in 2008 and was even more successful, earning yet another three-star review as well as being awarded the coveted Michelin Star.

Geoffrey on Food Network

Geoffrey first appeared on Food Network in 2009 as a judge on the very first season of Chopped, where he became a regular as a recurring judge. In 2010, he was a competitor on Iron Chef America, where he went up against chef Masaharu Morimoto. He lost that competition, but returned the following year to compete on The Next Iron Chef. This time, he won, landing him the title of Iron Chef.

In 2014, he fully joined the Food Network family as a host on Food Network's daytime show, The Kitchen, alongside co-hosts Sunny Anderson, Katie Lee Biegel, Jeff Mauro and (beginning in 2017) Alex Guarnaschelli.

In 2016, he became host of the new competition series, Cooks vs. Cons, a show that asks the question: could a talented home cook beat a pro chef? In 2022, he also began hosting Big Restaurant Bet, a series that seeks to identify rising star chefs and takes them through a series of challenges that offer a dose of reality in restaurant operation and dynamics. Geoffrey's other Food Network appearances include Beat Bobby Flay, Bobby's Triple Threat, Star Plates, Kitchen Sink and 24-Hour Restaurant Battle.

Books and Publications

Geoffrey's books include:

• Geoffrey Zakarian's Town/Country: 150 Recipes for Life Around the Table
• My Perfect Pantry: 150 Easy Recipes From 50 Essential Ingredients
• Cast Iron Cooking: The Dutch Oven
• Hamptons Entertaining
• The Family That Cooks Together: 85 Zakarian Family Recipes From Our Table to Yours (co-authored with his daughters, Madeline and Anna)

Keep Up With Geoffrey

Interested in keeping track of Geoffrey and all of his Food Network shows, recipes and activities? Check out his website, his Instagram account and Food Network show pages for The Kitchen, Big Restaurant Bet and Cooks vs. Cons.