This Is How Emeril Lagasse Built His Empire

Celebrity chef Emeril Lagasse has always been drawn to food. As per his website, he found his passion while growing up in Fall River, Massachusetts. His mom was more than happy to let her son learn the basics of cooking as she prepared delicious dishes for the family. Lagasse also got some valuable work experience at a Portuguese bakery as a teen and explored the world of baking early on.

Lagasse didn't mind pushing himself out of his comfort zone to pursue his love for food whenever he got the opportunity to expand his horizons. He even lived briefly in France to sharpen his culinary skills further before working in several well-known eateries in the U.S. Of course, Lagasse's current reputation in the industry is the result of immense hard work and grit. He has done really well for himself. According to Money Inc., Lagasse's net worth is around $70 million. Phew.

For Lagasse, he worked hard while he was the chef at the well-known eatery, Commander's Palace. Seven years at the restaurant gave him the confidence to take a leap of faith and start something of his own. In the early 1990s, the aspiring entrepreneur and chef got to work in New Orleans, spending as many as 15 hours every single day experimenting with new recipes and writing. "Today those dishes kind of seem ... ugh, okay," Lagasse told Eater. "But if you think [back to] 25 years ago, those dishes were so cutting-edge for New Orleans."

When Lagasse's first restaurant finally opened for business, it received plenty of praise for being impressive and memorable. In just a couple of years, the chef inaugurated his second eatery, NOLA, which led to a lucrative television offer. Lagasse accepted and became one of the most recognized names on the Food Network. He simultaneously wrote several cookbooks and continued working on his restaurants, something that ensured the chef was able to build a robust empire of his own.