After a long day shooting your Netflix baking competition show, Nailed It!, what is your favorite guilty pleasure to eat? “It’s filmed in LA so, of course, a Double-Double from In-n-Out Burger.”
Is there one dish you won’t cook? “I’m happy to try everything, at least once.”
All-time favorite spice. “Herbes de Provence.”
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What is your favorite music to listen to while you cook? “Dance music. I like music that is upbeat such as Lady Gaga and Bruno Mars. Or anything disco, I will listen to that, too.”
Did you grow up cooking as a kid? “Yes. I started cooking around 9-years-old. I would make crêpes at home for my parents. By 15-years-old, I had started my apprenticeship at a bakery.”
What cookbook is your go-to resource for inspiration? “Any of Jacques Pépin’s books.”
After all these years working in restaurants and as a chocolatier, do you still enjoy going out to eat? “Absolutely! It’s home for me. I have spent more time in my life working and being in restaurants than being at home. I immediately feel comfortable entering a restaurant, and I feel even more comfortable in the back with the chef and cooks.”
Is there one chef you’d like to cook with? “Marie Antoine Carême.”
Name the all-time best cooking show. “Julia and Jacques Cooking at Home.”
What is the one tool that you always make sure to pack when you’re traveling for business? “My laser thermometer.”
Famed pastry chef Jacques Torres A.K.A. Mr. Chocolate runs his own eponymous chocolate brand and stars in the Netflix show, Nailed It!
Interview has been condensed and edited.
