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Joe Bastianich Books

Restaurateur

Joe Bastianich, born on September 17, 1968, is an Italian-American restaurateur known for his passion for food and exquisite Italian cuisine.

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Related Quotes

“Although I love all the great foods of the world, my death row meal would have to be cooked for me by my mother and grandmother (they live together and this happens on most Sundays). More than satisfy our hunger, these dinners nurture the soul.”

World Soul Happens Together Mother Hunger Dinner Meals Grandmother Sunday Nurture Great Food Death Row Mother And Grandmother

Author:Joe Bastianich

“Aside from hospitality and delicious food, our [restaurateurs'] job is to entertain people. Restaurants should make people feel special, excited and fulfilled.”

People Feels Should Jobs Special Excited Restaurants Fulfilled Delicious Hospitality Delicious Food

Author:Joe Bastianich

“Restaurant Man is kind of the story, an unabridged story of what happened in my life, the good bad and ugly. Some people might glean some life lessons. It is honest, not written as a press release.”

People Men Kind Stories Might Written Happened Honest Lessons Presses Ugly Release Restaurants Life Lesson Press Release

Author:Joe Bastianich

“Frankly, Milan kind of sucks as a restaurant city. Its so fashion-obsessed that people dont pay that much attention to the food.”

People Kind Pay Cities Attention Fashion Obsessed Restaurants Milan

Author:Joe Bastianich

“The menu should be part of the entertainment, part of the dining experience. It's kind of like reading the 'Playbill' when you go to the theater. It should be an alluring and interactive document. Does it have burn marks on it from the candle? If you ever get a greasy menu with food stains on it, it's time to run like hell.”

Ifs Should Kind Doe Running Reading Hell Mark Theater Entertainment Candle Documents Stains Dining Menus Interactive Alluring

Author:Joe Bastianich

“The general manager is kind of like the step into darkness when you reach the top of the league. As GM, you're responsible for everything, including the maitre d's and the sommeliers - all these people who have their own agendas. But you probably make less than the maitre d' and have a lot more work and a lot more headaches.”

People Kind Steps Darkness Responsible Including Managers League Agendas Headache General Manager Sommelier

Author:Joe Bastianich

“Being a cook doesn't necessarily mean you are a competitor.”

Mean Cooks Competitors

Author:Joe Bastianich

“He brought a sensibility and a hard-edged reasonableness to operating restaurants that had a lasting impact on me and still affects how I run all our restaurants today. The passing of 'Restaurant Man' - the original gangsta 'Restaurant Man,' my father - was the passing of an era. No one can replace him.”

Men Stills Hard Running Today Father Originals Impact Passing Passings Eras Restaurants Lasting Sensibility Gangsta Reasonableness Lasting Impact

Author:Joe Bastianich

“There are many things I'm looking forward to in 2013, both personally and professionally. Plans for new restaurants in the U.S., including Eataly Chicago, are underway, and I'm gearing up for the 2013 Ironman world championships in Hawaii - if I'm lucky enough to get a spot!”

Ifs World Enough Plans Lucky Including Spots Restaurants Chicago Championship Hawaii Looking Forward Ironman Gearing Up

Author:Joe Bastianich

“Being frugal, conscious of making money, is not a negative thing. That sensibility of creating value and finding value and reinvesting in those customers is what separates great restaurants from the average ones.”

Values Findings Creating Conscious Negative Average Customers Making Money Restaurants Sensibility Frugal Creating Value Great Restaurants

Author:Joe Bastianich

“I think that, by comparison with $2,000 bottles of grand cru Burgundies, first-rate barolos, which sell for under $100, are undervalued ten-fold.”

Thinking Firsts Ten Sells Rate Comparison Bottles Folds Undervalued Burgundy

Author:Joe Bastianich

“Working in a restaurant means being part of a family, albeit usually a slightly dysfunctional one. Nothing is accomplished independently.”

Mean Restaurants Accomplished

Author:Joe Bastianich

“At Babbo, each dish grew out of a conversation, trying to put something forth that was new and different. It was a combination of culinary adventurism and the dining-room experience with respect for the classic but with an eye toward innovation. And it was about eating locally, whether produce or fish or meat.”

Trying Different Eye Rooms Produce Grew Conversation Eating Innovation Fishes Combination Meat Classic Culinary Dishes Dining Dining Rooms

Author:Joe Bastianich

“Finding specialty food items was a bit of a challenge in Asia in the early days of getting the Mozza's up and running. Everything is built on relationships, and when you start somewhere new, it takes time to develop that. Staffing can also present challenges.”

Running Bits Challenges Findings Built Take Time Asia Items It Takes Time Specialty Staffing

Author:Joe Bastianich

“I think a lot of people overlook the importance of the menu as a marketing tool and a way of communicating to the customer what the ambition of their restaurant is. Not only the typeface and the design, but what is it printed on? Is it cheap-looking? Is it the right kind of paper for that restaurant?”

People Thinking Way Kind Design Paper Ambition Tools Importance Marketing Communicate Customers Restaurants Printed Menus Typefaces

Author:Joe Bastianich

“'MasterChef' is the search for America's culinary amateur talent, so this is a search for the best home cook in America, and it's our job to figure out who that is.”

Home Jobs America Talent Figures Cooks Culinary Masterchef

Author:Joe Bastianich

“My grandparents in Istria had a frasca, which is about the most basic kind of grocery/restaurant. They sold wine from their own vineyard. I took control of the vineyard, hired a local winemaker, and bought another winery in 1996. We had our first commercial vintage in 1998.”

Firsts Kind Wine Locals Restaurants Grandparent Groceries Vintage Vineyards

Author:Joe Bastianich

“Beans are a real go-to for me.”

Real Beans

Author:Joe Bastianich

“I come from a family that loves to eat, not exercise. Being fat made even walking hard.”

Made Hard Walking Exercise Fats Being Fat

Author:Joe Bastianich

“I definitely invented the everything bagel. There's no doubt. It's undeniable truth. It's one of those things that's 100% true, 50% of the time.”

Doubt No Doubt Bagels

Author:Joe Bastianich

“I have a Madonna portrait done in the style of a Russian icon. My mother, the chef Lidia Bastianich, and I bought it together. It reminds me of her.”

Done Together Mother Style Chef Portraits Icons

Author:Joe Bastianich

“I'm one of three judges on 'MasterChef' with Gordon Ramsay, but I don't want my own show. I'm kind of used to the sidekick gig.”

Want Kind Shows Used Three My Own Judging Gigs Sidekicks Masterchef

Author:Joe Bastianich

“New York is the best food city in the world.”

World Cities New York Cities In The World Best Food

Author:Joe Bastianich

“The best pastas are cut with bronze dies that give them a rough texture and allow the sauce to cling.”

Giving Dies Cutting Rough Texture Sauce Pasta Bronze

Author:Joe Bastianich

“It's one thing to execute dishes on your own time for family and friends, but quite another to perform and be judged in a competition. And that's what cooking in a high profile restaurant is. It's a competition. You're up against every other three-star restaurant in your city, and if you want to stay in business, you'd better deliver.”

Ifs Want Three Stars Cities One Thing Cooking Competition Restaurants Judged Dishes Family And Friends Profile High Profile

Author:Joe Bastianich

“After World War II, a lot of people moved to the cities for work and abandoned the old vineyards. Then in the 1950s and 1960s, wineries were paid to produce volume at a cheap price. That's when the Lambruscos and bad Chianti were popular.”

People World War Cities Produce Paid Moved War Of The Worlds Abandoned World War Ii World War I Volume 1960s Vineyards Chianti

Author:Joe Bastianich

“Babbo's menu is only four pages, but it's overwhelming - there are 20 different pastas in there, a lot of stuff. There is nothing I hate more than a useless, lazy menu with only three appetizers and four entrees.”

Different Hate Three Stuff Four Pages I Hate Useless Lazy Overwhelming Pasta Menus Appetizers Entrees

Author:Joe Bastianich

“Cooking for my family is always a pleasure when I'm able to do it. My favorite thing to make is really whatever my kids ask for on any given day. It's more about being with them and doing something together.”

Kids Able Together Asks Given Pleasure My Family Cooking My Favorite Favorites Things

Author:Joe Bastianich

“Every time I open a new restaurant, I wake up in the middle of the night moaning about bread and water. I dream I am in the middle of the dining room, and I am panicked.”

Dream Night Water Rooms Middle Wake Up Bread Restaurants Middle Of The Night Dining Moaning Dining Rooms

Author:Joe Bastianich

“I was brought up to believe I could achieve anything. My mother instilled in me the belief that there was always something great coming. For example, even though I'm afraid of flying, I always think the plane can't crash because there are so many better things still to come.”

Thinking Believe Stills Mother Belief Achieve Example Flying Planes Crash

Author:Joe Bastianich

“I was raised in restaurants. My parents opened their first restaurant, Buonavia, in Queens when I was just 3. This business has always been my way of life. As a kid, home was reserved only for sleeping. After school, you could find my sister and I helping out at the family restaurant.”

Way Firsts Helping Home Kids School Parent Sleep Raised My Way Queens Restaurants My Sister Reserved After School

Author:Joe Bastianich

“Maitre d's are at the financial spigot of the restaurant, meaning they control who gets in and who doesn't, but aside from that, they don't do anything. And yet they get paid as much as the highest-paid people in the place.”

People Highest Paid Financial Restaurants

Author:Joe Bastianich

“Selling wine is all about sizing people up, and it takes a certain amount of chutzpah. The tableside bottle sell is a very funny thing - you take a look at the guy's blazer, what kind of shoes he's wearing, what kind of broad he's with. Is he trying to be a hero?”

People Trying Looks Kind Guy Certain Amount Hero Sells Wine Shoes Selling Broads Bottles Funny Things Blazers

Author:Joe Bastianich

“Take the time to shop for yourself and cook. All of this is an investment in yourself, and if you're not going to invest time and money in what you put in your body, then what are you going to spend money on? It's kind of the most important thing.”

Ifs Kind Important Body Important Things Investment Your Body Cooks Shops Time And Money

Author:Joe Bastianich

“There are certain things that make restaurants work and a certain kind of DNA that people who excel in restaurants need. But it's a lot like life, in the sense that you get out of it what you put into it.”

People Needs Kind Certain Restaurants Dna

Author:Joe Bastianich

“When I stopped looking at food as a reward or a celebration and began looking at food as energy to fuel my athletic ambitions, that really kind of changed the whole world for me. That was the real 'aha!' moment.”

World Kind Real Whole Moments Energy Changed Ambition Rewards Whole World Fuel Celebration Athletic Aha Moment

Author:Joe Bastianich

“Your pantry is your first line of defense against food-borne illness and things like high blood pressure and cholesterol.”

Firsts Lines Blood Pressure Illness Defense Chef Blood Pressure Cholesterol Pantry High Blood Pressure

Author:Joe Bastianich

“You can enjoy a $15 bottle of wine as much as you can enjoy a $100 bottle of wine.”

Enjoy Wine Bottles Chef Bottles Of Wine

Author:Joe Bastianich

“No matter what it is you are cooking, buy the best ingredients you can afford. I don't care if it's a simple salad or Beef Wellington. A quality product stands alone and won't need any dressing up.”

Ifs Needs Matter Care Simple Quality Products No Matter What Cooking Don't Care I Don't Care Ingredients Chef Dressings Salad Beef Stand Alone Dressing Up Wellington

Author:Joe Bastianich

“As a restaurateur, my palate is one of my most important tools.”

Important Tools Palate

Author:Joe Bastianich

“Carbs - especially pasta - are the fuel my body needs to maintain an athletic lifestyle.”

Needs Body Lifestyle Fuel Athletic Pasta Carbs

Author:Joe Bastianich

“Pasta is the one food I can't live without. It's the food I eat to fuel my running.”

I Can Running Fuel Pasta

Author:Joe Bastianich

“Essentially, wines are fermented grape juice, so I'm trying to make the point that the wine world is about scores and marketing and kind of creating a scarce resource where they don't really exist.”

World Trying Kind Creating Resources Wine Marketing Score Juice Grapes Scarce Scarce Resources

Author:Joe Bastianich

“Wine pricing is an art - like painting.”

Art Painting Wine Pricing

Author:Joe Bastianich

“If you eliminate the junk food, you don't really run the risk of gaining weight if you've got a good workout routine.”

Ifs Running Risk Weight Routine Good Work Workout Junk Junk Food Good Workout Gaining Weight

Author:Joe Bastianich

“In Italy, food is an expression of love. It is how you show those around you that you care for them. Having a love for food means you also have a love for those you are preparing it for and for yourself.”

Mean Shows Care Expression Preparing Expressions Of Love

Author:Joe Bastianich

“Classics can be phenomenal when done right. A simple roast chicken dish could be the best thing you ever eat.”

Done Simple Best Things Being The Best Chickens Dishes Phenomenal Roast Chicken

Author:Joe Bastianich

“Most people who open restaurants will fail, because they lack the fundamental understanding of restaurant math. Either they think they're superstar cooks or they think they're superstar hosts.”

People Thinking Understanding Failing Fundamentals Math Cooks Restaurants Host Superstar

Author:Joe Bastianich

“It's kind of like a midlife crisis kind of thing. When you turn 40, you have to run the marathon, while all the parts still work properly.”

Kind Stills Running Turns Crisis Marathon Midlife Midlife Crisis

Author:Joe Bastianich

“I prioritize in life. I like to work, I do TV shows, I do a lot of Iron Man training. I enjoy kicking back on a good night and drinking wine until I go to bed, and having fun with my friends. You just have to make time for it and keep it balanced.”

About the Author

Born: September 17, 1968
Known for: Restaurateur
Quotes: 60

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