Who is raking in the most celebrity chef cash?

by Monika Bartyzel, Posted Aug 12th 2008 @ 6:30PM

No wonder the Internet is swarming with a horde of wanna-be celebrity chefs. Forbes reports that those faces we all know and love (or loathe) are making some decent coin as faces of the cooking world.

Sure, some of them are making a heck of a lot more because they're taking over the airwaves with a million different shows (Rachel Ray), but man, it just hurts me to see Paula Deen ahead of the likes of Bourdain, Flay, and Batali.

The Top 10 Earning Celebrity Chefs:

10. Anthony Bourdain - $1.5 million
9. Bobby Flay - $1.5 million
8. Tom Colicchio - $2 million
7. Mario Batali - $3 million
6. Paula Deen - $4.5 million
5. Alain Ducasse - $5 million
4. Nobuyuki Matsuhisa - $5 million
3. Gordon Ramsay - $7.5 million
2. Wolfgang Puck - $16 million
1. Rachel Ray - $18 million

[via Serious Eats]

Filed Under: Celebrities
Tags: celebrity chef earnings, celebrity chefs, CelebrityChefEarnings, CelebrityChefs

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Reader comments (Page 1 of 1)

8-12-2008 @7:31PM lizandrsn said... Wait! Anthony Bourdain makes as much as ol' Bobby Flay, with fewer TV shows and such? I'm guessing he's laughing all the way to the bank in what ever country his is in right now.
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8-12-2008 @9:46PM ronzo said... Is Rachael Ray even really a real chef?
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8-12-2008 @11:02PM TryToGuess said... R.R aint a chef. Technically this should've said "The Top 10 Earning Celebrity Cooks," but that's all semantics.
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8-12-2008 @11:09PM Cris said... No Emeril? Surprising, but hey, I suppose I haven't been seeing much of him lately, now that I think about it...
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8-13-2008 @9:21AM R. P. McMurphy said... I'm surprised by Emeril too.
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8-13-2008 @10:45AM Hungover Gourmet said... They never say what these figures are based on so I have some doubts about the accuracy, especially since Martha Stewart bought the Emeril media and merchandising business for about $50 million. Is that what Flay makes from Food Network alone or does that also include his various restaurants? If that's all he's pulling down from all his efforts he may want to rethink his career path.
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8-13-2008 @11:19AM Astin said... Hasn't Rachel long held that she's not a chef, but a cook? ie.- no formal training, just likes tossing stuff together like anybody else?

I'm not shocked by Emeril, since he's gone from Food and sold everything in his media portfolio to Martha Stewart.

It is incredibly sad that Paula Deen is that high up though.
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8-13-2008 @3:13PM jdhawk said... Bourdain has "No Reservations", a contract w/ Top Chef, and Kitchen Confidential pulling in cash for him. I'm surprised he's not higher. Probably because you don't see Global 9" Chefs Knife "Anthony Bourdain" edition.
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8-14-2008 @4:29PM Bob said... The worst steak (and most expensive) I've ever eaten was at Flay's MESA in Vegas. They folks next to us at dinner agreed. Anything at Outback is better. So if you ask me, his $1.5mil seems kinda steep for a guy who can't keep tabs on his primary business.
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9-20-2008 @4:09AM B. Flay err...Bobby F. said... Why would you order a steak from MESA grill? If you want steak go to a steakhouse. That one is on you, buddy.

As for other "celeb chefs" does that mean you have to be on television to be on the list? Probably not since Nobu is on there. What about Roy Yamaguchi or Thomas Keller? Something tells me Keller is banking some decent money and Roy has restaurants all over the country and Japan. And Robuchon? I would guess he makes more than $1 million from the Japanese alone and that is before his US/European outlets. What about other European chefs who earn their bread in Euros or Pounds which are currently dominating the US dollar. This list is a farce and there is no way it is a complete list. Its more of a "Ten-Chefs-That-People-Have-Heard-Of and How Much They Make" list.

Additionally, being included in a list like this, I can understand why Ramsay hates the "celebrity chef" moniker.
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