Estimated Net Worth: $75 Million
Restaurant: Spago
As Seen On: Cooking Class with Wolfgang Puck
Wolfgang Puck is an Austrian-born chef, restaurateur, and actor who learned the ins and outs of the kitchen from his pastry chef mother. At the age of 24, he decided to move to the States, where he got his start in Los Angeles. In 1982 he opened up his first restaurant — Spago. The restaurant became a major hit when in 1993, it was inducted into the Nation’s Restaurant News Fine Dining Hall of Fame.
The following year it received the James Beard Restaurant of the Year Award. Puck’s hit show on the Food Network earned a 2001-2002 Daytime Emmy for Oustanding Service Show. In 2009 and 2009 Spago was awarded two Michelin stars. He currently lives in LA and runs a string of restaurants across the country, including Spago, The Cut, and several eponymous chains.
Michael Symon
Estimated Net Worth: $4 Million
Restaurant: Lola
As Seen On: Iron Chef America
Symon does sure seem like a Food Network staple. Having appeared on the network for years, it almost feels like he was raised right in their studios. Funnily enough, he actually got his start on cooking shows on ABC's "The Chew" in 2011. He is probably one of TV's most recognizable chefs today. In 1998, he was named Best New Chef by Food & Wine magazine. Symon's restaurants have received many accolades, among them, The James Beard Foundation Award for Best Chef Great Lakes.
He has appeared on several notable shows including "Dinner: Impossible" (2008), "Symon's Suppers" (2012-13), "The Chew" (2011-2018), and also has a published cookbook titled "Michael Symon’s Live to Cook: Recipes and Techniques to Rock Your Kitchen."
Alton Brown
Estimated Net Worth: $13 million
Restaurant: N/A
As Seen On: Good Eats
Chef Alton Brown actually got his start in acting before he enrolled in culinary school. But even during his years of studying drama, he was somehow drawn to the world of food. His prowess in the kitchen eventually landed him a spot in the show "Good Eats," a show that aired for a whopping 13 years. The show gives solid explanations on why some ingredients work and some don't, for example, why one uses egg whites for meringue and not the whole egg — useful stuff.
Brown's show combines sharp comedy and food science to make a really entertaining and informative show. He has also appeared on Iron Chef America, as well as toured the country giving lectures on the art of cooking.
Damaris Phillips
Estimated Net Worth: $3 million
Restaurant: N/A
As Seen On: The Bobby and Damaris Show
The American chef and TV personality was the 2013 winner of the Food Network series competition, "Food Network Star." The Food Network awarded Damaris's TV with yet another show named "Southern at Heart." The show ran for 6 six seasons, giving rise to Phillips' popularity. She then joined the majorly popular American TV chef, Bobby Flay for the show aptly named "The Bobby and Damaris Show."
The Southern belle Phillips married Darrick Wood, a vegetarian. Since her marriage, she has put a lot of her culinary efforts into combining southern cuisine with vegetarian dishes and even wrote a cookbook on the subject named "Southern Girl Meets Vegetarian Boy: Down Home Classics for Vegetarians (and the Meat Eaters Who Love Them)."
Emeril Lagasse
Estimated Net Worth: $70 Million
Restaurant: Emeril's New Orleans
As Seen On: Essence of Emeril
A celebrity chef, restaurateur, TV personality, writer, and National Best Recipe award winner for his ‘Turkey and Hot Sausage Chili’ recipe in 2003, Emeril Lagasse has created a food empire and is probably one of the richest chefs in the world. His Creole and Cajun-style cuisine, dubbed "New New Orleans" has earned him a regional James Beard Award.
Lagasse has appeared on several cook shows, most notably the Food Network shows "Emeril Live" and "Essence of Emeril." His shows are famous for their many catchphrases such as "Kick it up a notch!" and "Bam!". The Massachusetts-born chef has an estimated annual revenue of US$150 million. He truly is the king of the kitchen