Q&A with CHEF Emeril

The Living Kitchen sat down with the incomparable Chef Emeril Lagasse at the 2025 Ritz-Carlton Cayman Cookout to learn more about cooking, community, and his love of his Sub-Zero refrigerator.

TLK: Thank you for chatting with us, Chef. We know you have been coming to the Cayman Cookout for nearly a decade. What brings you back, year after year? 

EL: The quality of everything—the setting, the food, the talent. This event is very special.

TLK: The camaraderie here is fantastic. 

EL:  Yes, it is. I have a deep loyalty to Eric Ripert, but the entire team of chefs at the Ritz-Carlton Grand Cayman is top-notch. 

TLK: And your son, E.J. Lagasse, is also in attendance.

EL: E.J. has been coming with me since he was 12 and learned his way around. Now it’s his second year here as a guest chef. 

I’m very proud that  E.J. has taken over the kitchen at our flagship restaurant, Emeril’s in New Orleans, and we recently opened 34 Restaurant and Bar together. I'm the third (Emeril John Lagasse), and he's the fourth. The restaurant is a tribute to his grandmother—my mother—with a modern take on traditional Portuguese cuisine. 

TLK: You and E.J. shared some of that cuisine with the attendees here, correct? 

EL:  Yes, we made a very simple salad with tomatoes and peppers, along with pork and clams—which is not only one of our great dishes you can find on our menu, but very popular back in Portugal.

EJ and I took our culinary team of about six or seven people to Lisbon, Porto, and the Azores, but when I took him to Fall River, Massachusetts (where I’m from), of course, it was almost as Portuguese!  

TLK: How do you think food can build a sense of community? 

EL: It is a binding agent for culture and people. People feel nurtured when they're fed. If you understand people, then you understand their culture, right? Then, if you understand ingredients, you understand their cuisine. It all binds together.

TLK: Of course, how you prepare and store your food matters immensely. I hear you are fond of Sub-Zero refrigeration.

EL: I love my Sub-Zero! I’ve always had Sub-Zero Refrigerators and wouldn’t trade them for anything. I need my ingredients to be the freshest, and the Sub-Zero does that beautifully.