Michael Voltaggio facts for kids

Michael Voltaggio, born on September 29, 1978, is a famous American chef. He owns restaurants and writes books about cooking. He won season 6 of the TV show Top Chef. His brother, Bryan Voltaggio, is also a well-known chef. Michael lives in Los Angeles, California.

Michael Voltaggio's Early Life and Training

Michael Voltaggio grew up with two siblings. When he was five, his parents divorced. He first lived with his mother, then later with his father. Michael and his brother Bryan were very close as kids.

Michael did not have money to go to a special cooking school. Instead, he joined a long training program. This was at The Greenbrier Hotel. He finished this program when he was 21 years old. He learned from a top chef named Peter Timmins.

After his training, Michael worked at other famous places. He worked at the Ritz Carlton Hotel in Naples, Florida. He also worked at Charlie Palmer's Dry Creek Kitchen. Later, he was a head chef at The Bazaar by Jose Andres. This restaurant was nominated for a big award in 2008.

Michael also worked as the head chef at The Dining Room. This restaurant was in the Langham Huntington Hotel & Spa in Pasadena. It won many cooking awards. These included the AAA Five Diamond Award and a Michelin Star. A Michelin Star is a very special award for restaurants.

Michael Voltaggio's Restaurants

In 2010, Michael Voltaggio left The Dining Room. He planned to open his own restaurant in West Hollywood, California. This restaurant, called ink., opened on September 21, 2011. Michael wanted to create "modern Los Angeles cuisine." This means new and exciting food inspired by Los Angeles.

The ink. restaurant could seat 60 people. It also had a private room for 10 more guests. GQ Magazine named it "America's best new restaurant" in March 2012.

While planning ink., Michael also secretly worked on a smaller place. This was a sandwich shop called ink.sack. He built the shop himself. It opened quietly on August 11, 2011. He owned and ran ink.sack until 2018. It had two locations in West Hollywood.

Michael and his brother Bryan opened STRFSH together. This was a fast-casual fish sandwich shop. It was in Santa Monica, California. It was open from October 2017 to 2021. The brothers also opened Estuary in Washington D.C. They led this restaurant from 2019 until March 2022.

Michael Voltaggio on TV

Michael Voltaggio won the sixth season of Top Chef. This is a cooking competition show on Bravo. He competed against his brother, Bryan Voltaggio, in the finale. Michael won the competition. The head judge, Tom Colicchio, said Michael was very talented.

Michael appeared on Top Chef again in 2010. He was a guest judge on Top Chef Canada. His sous-chef, Mei Lin, later won Top Chef season 12.

Michael also appeared on the American TV show Young & Hungry. He played himself in two episodes. He also had a small role as a chef on the show “Suburgatory” in 2013. He appeared as himself in a few episodes of the Netflix show Lucifer (TV series).

He competed against Bobby Flay on Iron Chef America. He also competed against his brother Bryan on Tournament of Champions.

Michael was a guest judge on Bong Appétit. On March 14, 2022, a new show started on Food Network. It is called The Julia Child Challenge. Michael is a judge on this show. He also judges and competes on Guy's Grocery Games.

In 2022, Bobby Flay chose Michael to be one of his three "culinary Titans" on Bobby's Triple Threat.

Michael Voltaggio's Family Life

Michael Voltaggio has three daughters. Two are with his ex-wife, Kerri Adams. They live in West Virginia with their mother. His third daughter is with his current wife, Bria Vinaite.

Michael Voltaggio married actress Bria Vinaite on November 18, 2022. Their wedding was in Hawaii.