Casino Connection Atlantic City

More Celeb Chefs

Giada De Laurentiis will appear at 1 and 4 p.m. November 18 at Caesars’ Circus Maximus Theatre. Tickets are $25.

by Joseph Harrison

aesars Atlantic City’s Celebrity Chefs Series continues on November 18 with the very popular and equally gorgeous Giada De Laurentiis.

You know celebrity chefs have become a major thing when they are being booked for casino showrooms. And De Laurentiis is certainly one of the most successful. Like Rachel Ray, De Laurentiis brings a lot of sexiness to the Food Network, where her background in culinary training and unique personal charm and good looks have made her a household name.

De Laurentiis’ cookbooks, Everyday Italian, Giada’s Family Dinners and Everyday Pasta, have opened many doors for her. Aside from personal appearances, she is a spokesperson for Barilla pasta as well as Pyrex Glassware, sicne she appeals to regular Food Network viewers as well as a younger generation.

Born in Rome, De Laurentiis grew up in a large family where the culture of food was a staple. The granddaughter of film producer Dino De Laurentiis, Giada De Laurentiis first learned family recipes before going to school at the University of California in Los Angeles, where she received a degree in anthropology. But after graduating, her passion for cooking remained, and she decided to pursue a culinary career, studying in Paris and eventually returning to Los Angeles to work at the Ritz Carlton and Wolfgang Puck’s Spago.

But it’s her half-hour daytime cooking show on the Food Network, Everyday Italian, that propelled De Laurentiis to culinary stardom. She also launched a primetime TV series titled Giada’s Weekend Getaways, as well as specials like Giada in Paradise.