Recipes How To Reviews Chefs News Inspiration Sign In

America's most influential chefs of all time

Inspirational foodies
41. Andrea Nguyen
40. Carla Hall
39. Dorie Greenspan
38. Aarón Sánchez
37. Ming Tsai
36. Sunny Anderson
35. Paul Prudhomme
34. Giada De Laurentiis
33. Marcela Valladolid
32. Bobby Flay
31. Rachael Ray
30. Vertamae Smart-Grosvenor
29. Rick Bayless
28. Catherine Cora
27. J. Kenji López-Alt
26. Marcus Samuelsson
25. Samin Nosrat
24. Mark Bittman
23. Thornton Prince III
22. David Chang
21. Monica Flin
20. J. Ranji Smile
19. Thomas Keller
18. Jacques Pépin
17. Domenico DeMarco
16. Roy Choi
15. Leah Chase
14. Martin Yan
13. Emeril Lagasse
12. Arthur Bryant
11. Ina Garten
10. Wolfgang Puck
9. Jessica B. Harris
8. Louis Lassen
7. Irma S. Rombauer
6. Alice Waters
5. Martha Stewart
4. Edna Lewis
3. Anthony Bourdain
2. Julia Child
1. James Beard
1 of 42
Alexander Tamargo/Getty Images

Inspirational foodies

The United States' cuisine is a delicious mix of different cultural influences, many of which are informed by chefs, food writers and home cooks from all over the country. Here, we celebrate 41 individuals who have all left an indelible mark on the food scene in the US, shaping the way regular Americans cook and eat every day. 

Click or scroll through our gallery to discover the USA's most inspirational chefs, counting down to the most influential of all. 

We've based our ranking on the popularity and influence of each chef, and on the opinions of our well-travelled (and well-fed) team. The list is unavoidably subjective.

Gallery view |
List View

Elizabeth Chorney-Booth

25 July 2024

Inspiration

See more on this topic

Share the love