IH+HS to Cook This Year with Robert Irvine, Ayesha Curry and Emeril Lagasse

Food Network celebrity chef Robert Irvine will make his debut in the Cooking Theater and Ayesha Curry and Emeril Lagasse return to the stage during the 2019 International Home + Housewares Show, March 2-5 at Chicago’s McCormick Place.

Also set to appear are Cooking Theater veterans Rick Bayless, Lanie Bayless, Ming Tsai, Fabio Viviani and Greg Wade.

The chef demonstrations will begin at 10:30 a.m. on Saturday, March 2 and continue through Tuesday, March 5. During the four Show days, 25 national and local celebrity chefs will be demonstrating their culinary talents using products that can be found throughout the Show. The Cooking Theater, located in the Dine + Décor Expo in the South Building, is jointly sponsored by KitchenAid and WellnessMats.

Irvine is a world-class chef, fitness authority, philanthropist and tireless supporter of U.S. military veterans. He pioneered a new genre of programming for Food Network with his extreme cooking challenge show, “Dinner: Impossible,” which ran for seven seasons and more than 100 episodes and parlayed that success into the even more popular “Restaurant: Impossible,” which ran for 13 seasons and 160 episodes. Irvine has also hosted or appeared on Food Network’s “Worst Cooks in America,” “Next Iron Chef,” “Restaurant Express,” “Chopped: Impossible,” “Guy’s Grocery Games: Impossible,” “A Hero’s Welcome” and “Food Network Star.” He is the author of three books, “Impossible to Easy,” “Mission: Cook” and “Fit Fuel;” launched the FitCrunch line of protein bars, brownies and powders; and in 2017 opened Robert Irvine’s Public House, a restaurant featuring elevated pub food at the Tropicana Hotel in Las Vegas. To support veterans and veteran causes that need the most help, Irvine established the Robert Irvine Foundation in 2014, providing grants to the USO, Valor Service Dogs, Gary Sinise Foundation and American Veterans Center; attends troop rallies held by the Gary Sinise Foundation and tours regularly with the USO.

Lagasse is the chef/proprietor of 11 restaurants in New Orleans, Las Vegas, Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, and most recently, Miramar Beach, Florida. He has hosted more than 2,000 shows on the Food Network and is the food correspondent for ABC’s Good Morning America. Recently, Amazon launched an original series featuring Lagasse called “Eat the World with Emeril Lagasse.” He has appeared as a guest judge in four seasons of Bravo’s hit food series, “Top Chef,” was named a co-host on the 10th season of the Rachael Ray Show and has appeared on the Cooking Channel with five seasons of “Emeril’s Florida.” He is the bestselling author of 19 cookbooks, the latest titled “Essential Emeril: Favorite Recipes and Hard-Won Wisdom from My Life in the Kitchen.”

Curry is a chef, restaurateur, New York Times bestselling author and host of “Ayesha’s Homemade” on the Food Network. She was recently named one of the newest faces of Covergirl cosmetics, is featured on the prestigious 30 Under 30 list by Forbes Magazine and has more than 8 million avid social media followers and subscribers. Curry has an eponymous line of cookware and bakeware, with a portion of all proceeds donated to No Kid Hungry. This year, she will expand her catalog of products for the home by releasing a line of kitchen textiles, a signature bedding collection and a line of indoor gardening products. Curry is wife of NBA superstar Stephen Curry and has three young children.

Rick Bayless is best known for winning the title of Bravo’s “Top Chef Masters.” His highly rated Public Television Series, “Mexico – One Plate at a Time,” is broadcast coast to coast and earned him multiple Daytime Emmy award nominations for best culinary host.

Lanie Bayless was raised in her father’s restaurants, Frontera Grill and Topolobampo, and brings a lifetime of hospitality experience to the family business. She serves as Spirits Director for Frontera Grill and Frontera Hospitality, helping to bring a fun and youthful energy to the bar programs.

Tsai, a James Beard Award-winning chef, has won an Emmy Award for his TV show “Simply Ming,” now in its 15th season on PBS and is the author of five cookbooks.

Viviani, best known for his television debut on Bravo’s “Top Chef,” currently owns 15 restaurants across the country, has his own wine label, Fabio Viviani Wine Collection, and is the author of four successful cookbooks.

Wade, head of the Publican Quality Meats’ bakery operations, received nominations in 2017 and 2018 for the James Beard Award for Outstanding Baker.

To view the most up-to-date participating chefs along with the scheduled dates and times, visit https://www.housewares.org/show/cooking-theater. The 2019 show will feature more than 2,200 exhibitors from around the globe showcasing their new products throughout five expos and 60,000 total attendees. Show badge registration is available at www.housewares.org/show/register-plan.