Nothing that color of radioactive orange can be food.

travelisfun..how cool is that to work at Gourmet Magazine!

Of course Julia and love Ina Garten and Patricia Wells..and me!

Racheal Ray!

WooHoo!!

Long live Yummo and EVOO!!!

Oops. I forgot that I watch Lidia constantly. She's my favorite chef currently on tv.

Yes, Patricia Wells is wonderful and now that we are seeing more of her, she is lovely and charming.

I guess we are so lucky to have such a proliferation of chefs to be having this thread.

I always admired Julia Child, but after reading her autobiography I love her more!! She was so dedicated to her craft and had a Great sense of humor...what an adventure she had!!

There's a big difference between cooks and chefs. If you're talking about "Amercian chefs", it has to be Julia.

I've never eaten food that Anthony Bourdain prepared, but I love his books and Travel Channel show. He seems like a cool guy.

a cook is someone that cooks, a chef is the boss

Not always granni. Sometimes the chef anwers to a F&B director or or an Exec Chef or the owner.

The late, great Justin Wilson. His cookbook is the most used and well stained cookbook my family owns.

Rachael Ray for second wife only. As for chef skills, I looked at her cookbook and the recipes appear to be at the Campbell's Soup cookbook level. Not what I want for supper.

My son is an Exec. Chef and told me that the chef is the boss. Be it of his department of the whole place, just like a manager is the boss, A COOK COOKS

granni - my point wasn't a debate about the pecking order in a kitchen so much (and I don't dispute your comments). My point was that there are some people who claim to be "chefs" but arguably aren't.

travelisfun,

Those video segments are terrific! Now if only I could win something!! ;-)

granni, my husband also has his Chef designation from the CIA, the ACF, and the AofC.

He is also a GM and an owner. His chefs cook, he doesn't.

Alex Ureña of Ureña in Manhattan.

P.S. He's not American (obviously) but he is *in* America...

Patrick O'Connell at the Inn at Little Washington! Has a sense of whimsy and only uses the freshest stuff. BTW--I LOVED the Julia autobiography too! Beautiful book!

All these foodies! Anybody going to the NRA Show in Chicago this weekend? I will be there from Sat to Tues and have some time to hook up in between parties. I am the Program Coordinator for DiRoNA (Distinguished Restaurants of North America). Would love to bump into a Fodorite or two....

Paula Dean gets me laughing so hard I have to go look up the recipes on the website. My wife says there is no way Giatta eats her own cooking swears she would weigh 300# if she did. Emeril has so many combinations with his New England roots and living in New Orleans.

hulajake,

That's what we say about Giada too!!!! We actually think the only bit she has of her food is the one she does in front of the camera. She cooks ALOT with butther and (and also too carby for me now) but she is so tiny! No way she eats any of her fattening stuff. Either that or she works out the rest of the time when she's not filming!