Meet Gregory Gourdet, whose story began like so many other immigrant stories, with hard work and perseverance. Fortunately, the same young Gregory who went to a Catholic school in Queens and a small private boarding school in Delaware has turned out to be a celebrated chef, best-selling author, and television personality.
He rose to fame on Top Chef as its runner-up in Seasons 12 and 17; added to the popularity by opening a Haitian restaurant ‘Kann’ in 2019; released his James Beard Award-winning cookbook, Everyone’s Table: Global Recipes for Modern Health, among other things.
Now, because he is back in a cooking competition on TV as one of the challengers in the fiery cooking competition called Iron Chef: Quest for an Iron Legend, let us tell you what he has been up to since we last saw him in another show.
Is Gregory Gourdet Married?
Gregory Gourdet was not married as of 2022. And before that, around September 2020, he was also not seeing anyone. When speaking to Portland Monthly for a feature story titled “The Voracious Appetites of Chef Gregory Gourdet”, at the time, Gregory said he was “too busy to date much”.
So, until this interview, openly gay/proud member of the LGBTQ+ community, Gregory was instead sharing a house with housemate Tia Vanich, his “sassy bestie” and one-woman cheering squad.
Gregory and Tia formed a deep bond after meeting in AA in 2009 and later working together at Bruce Carey Restaurants.
The pair have been through a lot together. When a day in March 2019, marked going drug, alcohol, and cigarette free for10 years, Gregory recalled sitting around in early sobriety with Tia, planning their lives and all the things they wanted to accomplish in the upcoming years. In his words, they wanted to stack years and not stop being themselves nor stop doing the things they loved because they were sober.
Like that, Gregory has been open about his battles with substance abuse that began while starting his career in “The City That Never Sleeps” around the turn of the century. He has often shared with the world how routine shots of liquor and lines of cocaine nearly derailed his life and career.
Anyway, Tia, who produces festivals and events for the music and food world, is also a “guiding force” for many of Gregory’s parties, including “Electric Summer”; one where they spent $5,000 of their own money.
Gregory Gourdet Net Worth
Gregory Gourdet reportedly had an estimated $2 million net worth as of 2022.
On Instagram @gg30000 152K followers), his foray into food was unexpected because he had already studied pre-med at NYU and wildlife biology at the University of Montana.
As for cooking, Gregory realized he had a knack for it when he needed to feed himself for the first time at the University of Montana. He studied Bachelor’s of French there from 1994 until 1998. Then, the next two years, he spend at The Culinary Institute of America for an Associate’s in Culinary Arts.
Speaking of today, his recent creative endeavor was the Kann Winter Village in the parking lot of the Redd in Southeast Portland that he launched in the midst of the coronavirus pandemic in January 2021.
How Old Is Gregory Gourdet?
Born on 25 July 1975, Gregory Gourdet reached the age of 46 in 2021.
Gregory Gourdet Height
Gregory stands around 6 feet tall in height; and the Men’s Health, at one time, dubbed him the “Fittest Chef in America”.
Gregory Gourdet Weight Loss
On Instagram in January 2022, Gregory Gourdet revealed a 40-lb weight loss journey and said “it was hard!”. Between gyms closing, a running injury (he has a torn meniscus), and survival eating at work, he had gained a good amount of weight in 2020. So, from 212 lbs he had come down to 172 lbs.
Everything Gregory used to do in the past, yoga and intermittent fasting just was not working this time. And when he could not even power walk on the treadmill, he went keto for the first time and extended his fasting to 20 to 24 hours a few days a week, and finally started losing the extra weight.
Gregory Gourdet Parents
Talking about Gregory Gourdet’s parents, dad (Jesse Gourdet) and mum (Yanick Gourdet) managed multiple jobs and also continued their education to provide the best life they could for their kids.
They came to the U.S. all the way from Port-au-Prince, Haiti. But, before that, they married each other on 17 May 2013.
Gregory’s dad, according to his Facebook, is the former laboratory administrator at New York Community Hospital, a former realtor at Laffey Real Estate, and an alum of New York University and St. John’s University. As of 2022 and he remained in Palm Coast, Florida with likely his wife.
As for siblings, Gregory has a sister only and she is Jessica Gourdet-Murray. So you know, Jessica is married to Arthur Murray and they share two beautiful daughters.
Related FAQs
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Is Gregory Gourdet Vegan?
Gregory Gourdet is not likely vegan. Because he recently shared with EBONY one of his favorite traditional dinner recipes for chicken stew.
Also, Gregory recalled that when he was a kid, he often left Queens on Sunday mornings to visit Mémère, his paternal grandmother, in New Jersey; where along with warm kisses and a few words of broken English, the same chicken stew would greet him and his family. Its official name, he said, is Poule Nan Sos in Haitian Creole, (or “chicken in sauce”).
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What Is Gregory Gourdet Ethnicity?
Gregory Gourdet is the first of his family to be born in the United States. So, his roots go back to his home in Haiti and the folks there.
Today, in the culinary scene, Gregory is known for infusing recipes and ingredients from his own Haitian heritage. As throughout his journey, he has always remained true to his mission to bring Haitian cuisine to a larger, mainstream audience.
(Of course) Gregory also has not neglected his birth country. He has played a very trendsetting role in the culinary boom of Portland, Oregon.
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Where Does Gregory Gourdet Live Today?
Once in the States, Gregory’s parents raised him in Queens, New York. Although on Twitter (in 2022) he mentioned living around Portland, Oregon.
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