Antonia Lofaso facts for kids
Antonia Marie Lofaso (born November 23, 1976) is a famous American chef and restaurant owner. She has appeared on many popular TV shows like Top Chef, Chopped, Cutthroat Kitchen, and Restaurant Startup.
Lofaso owns several restaurants in Los Angeles, California. These include Black Market Liquor Bar, Scopa Italian Roots, and DAMA.
| Born | 1976 (age 48–49) Long Island, New York, U.S. |
|---|---|
| Education | International Culinary Center |
|
Current restaurant(s)
|
|
|
Television show(s)
|
|
Contents
Antonia Lofaso's Restaurant Journey
Antonia Lofaso studied cooking at the International Culinary Center in New York City. While she was a student, she also worked as a manager at a restaurant called Justin. After finishing her studies, she became a chef at famous Los Angeles restaurants like Spago and Foxtail.
Today, Antonia Lofaso is a co-owner and the main chef at three popular restaurants in Los Angeles. These restaurants are Black Market Liquor Bar, DAMA, and Scopa Italian Roots.
Lofaso's Restaurants
- Black Market Liquor Bar (opened 2011), located in Los Angeles
- Scopa Italian Roots (opened 2013), located in Los Angeles
- DAMA (opened 2018), located in Los Angeles
- The Local Peasant, with locations in Woodland Hills and Sherman Oaks
Antonia Lofaso on Television
Antonia Lofaso has been on many cooking competition shows. In 2008, she was a contestant on Top Chef: Chicago and finished in fourth place. She returned for Top Chef: All-Stars from 2010 to 2011, where she placed third. In 2014, she won a "duel" on Top Chef Duels.
In 2012, Lofaso appeared on a show called Beat the Chefs. On this show, amateur chefs tried to beat professional chefs like her.
She was also a judge on the Food Network show Cutthroat Kitchen from 2013 to 2017. She even competed in a special episode of Cutthroat Kitchen in 2016 and won. Lofaso is also a judge on Guy's Grocery Games, which started in 2013. She has won many times on that show and is known by Guy Fieri as the "Warrior Princess."
From 2015 to 2016, Lofaso helped new restaurants on the CNBC show Restaurant Startup. In 2020, she was a guest on Selena + Chef, a cooking show hosted by Selena Gomez. She also appeared on The Bachelorette.
Lofaso was one of four chefs in a documentary film called Restaurant Hustle 2020: All On The Line. This film showed how the COVID-19 pandemic affected their restaurants. She was also in the sequel, Restaurant Hustle 2021: Back In Business.
In January 2022, Lofaso was the main judge on Guy’s Chance Of A Lifetime. She was also the head judge on The Julia Child Challenge in March and April 2022. In the summers of 2022 and 2023, she hosted Beachside Brawl. From August to November 2022, she co-hosted Guy's Ultimate Game Night. In January 2025, she became a co-host for season 28 of Worst Cooks in America.
Antonia Lofaso competed in Tournament of Champions and won Season 6 in 2025.
Antonia Lofaso's Early Life
Antonia Lofaso was born on November 23, 1976, on Long Island, New York. When she was eight years old, she moved to Northridge, Los Angeles, California, with her parents. Antonia Lofaso has both Italian (from Sicily) and Jewish family roots.
Antonia Lofaso has a daughter named Xea Myers, who was born in 2000. Xea's father was the late Jamaican-American rapper Heavy D.
