Estimated Net Worth: $3 million
Restaurant: Cesca Enoteca & Trattoria
As Seen On: Unique Eats, Chopped, American Diner Revival
A Food Network frequent, Amanda Freitag is a celebrity chef you have to know. She graduated from the Culinary Institute of America in 1989 and started working in the field right away. Her first job after graduating was at Jean-Georges Vongerichten’s restaurant, Vong. After five years, she left the restaurant for other food-related endeavors, including working in France and Italy.
She started her own restaurant called Cesca Enoteca & Trattoria in 2003. Her latest TV appearance is with Ty Pennington on the TV show American Diner Revival, where she and Ty transform restaurants both in terms of menu and design.
Julia Child
Estimated Net Worth: $50 million
Restaurant: N/A
As Seen On: The French Chef, Julia Child: Bon Appétit, and more
You could almost say that Julia Child has had two periods of being a celebrity chef — in life and after she passed away. She is actually regarded as America's first celebrity chef. Her face first appeared on American TV in 1963 and it wasn't long until she starred in many cooking shows of her own.
Her first TV show was "The French Chef", as she specialized in French cooking. It was just the first of many cooking shows she hosted or starred in. Years after her passing, she was lucky enough to be portrayed by Meryl Streep (which is probably anyone's dying wish) in the film "Julie & Julia." She has inspired many modern-day celebrity chefs and her kitchen is still on display at the Smithsonian!
Rick Stein
Estimated Net Worth: $1-5 million
Restaurant: The Seafood Restaurant, Rick Stein's Fish Restaurant, Rick Stein Cafe
As Seen On: Rick Stein's Taste of the Sea, Rick Stein's Fruits of the Sea, Rick Stein's Seafood Odyssey, and more
Christopher Richard "Rick" Stein was born in England in 1947 and has made a name for himself in pretty much any food-related field. He ran the Stein hotel and restaurant business for more than four decades and appeared on numerous TV shows.
He has also written many cookbooks, but that almost goes without saying. Given that his celebrity chef status was achieved back in the 90s, he is one of the few celebrity chefs to have released DVD and VHS tapes. That's how long ago that was!
Alex Guarnaschelli
Estimated Net Worth: $2 million
Restaurant: Butter
As Seen On: The Best Thing I Ever Ate, The Cooking Loft with Alex Guarnaschelli, and more
Some people have their talent embedded in their genes, and Alexandra (Alex) Guarnaschelli is definitely one of those people. Her mother, Maria, was a cookbook editor, and she recalls watching her mother testing cookbook recipes in their kitchen when she was little.
Years went by and Guarnaschelli has become a culinary personality in her own right. She appeared on several Food Network shows, including "Chopped" and "Iron Chef America." In 2013, her first cookbook, "Old-School Comfort Food: The Way I Learned to Cook," was released. It features recipes as well as personal memories. Her mama must be proud.
Padma Lakshmi
Estimated Net Worth: $40 million
Restaurant: N/A
As Seen On: Top Chef
Okay, so technically Padma Lakshmi is not a chef. She started her career as a model and actress. But still, after hosting 19 (!) seasons of Top Chef, she has definitely earned herself a spot on this list. Plus, you don't release three cookbooks without knowing a thing or two about cooking.
Lakshmi began her modeling career at 21 when she was studying abroad in Madrid and said: "I was the first Indian model to have a career in Paris, Milan, and New York. I'm the first one to admit that I was a novelty."