Steak is my favorite vegetable!
MICHAEL SYMON
American chef, restaurateur, television food celebrity, and author
1969—
Fix It With Food: Every Meal Easy
from Ian Makay’s Food for Thought: The Pleasures of the Table: Primi Piatti
Meat-Centric: Carnivores of the World Unite!
Restaurateur, chef, author, Food Network fixture, and member of ABC’s The Chew crew, Michael Symon is a familiar face. His smile is iconic and infectious. As a world-class carnivore, he’s popularized a new term in the culinary lexicon—meat-centric.
It’s also how Chef Symon describes the cuisine at his six Midwestern restaurants. While “meat-centric” seems self-explanatory, he explains that even when meat isn’t the centerpiece of a meal, animal protein, in one way or another, should play a supporting role.
Taking his carnivorous creations to another level, the Michael Symon has even authored a book specifically for meat-lovers: Michael Symon’s Carnivore: 120 Recipes for Meat Lovers: A Cookbook.
Symon Says: A Heathier Take on Food
“Healthy” may not be the first word that comes to mind given Chef Symon’s meat-centric mindset.
However, the personal impact of health issues led him to create two cookbooks for people with autoimmune disease and inflammation. Michael Symon’s struggle with lupus and rheumatoid arthritis became the driving force for these.
First of these, Fix It with Food, became a New York Times bestseller. It features over 125 recipes designed to managing inflammation and pain without sacrificing delicious food.
Second in the series, Fix It With Food: Every Meal Easy, adds 130 additional recipes. But it went a step further—designing a 20-day food plan. He described the first 10 days as a food “reset” on The Chew. Chef Symon publicly committed to no red meat, white flour, sugar, dairy, or alcohol to jumpstart the healing process.
Therefore, it should be no surprise that the sequel also became a national bestseller!
Chef, Restaurateur, Television Celebrity, Author, and Spokesperson
Unlike some television food stars, Michael Symon was a successful chef and restauranteur before entering the limelight. Food Network guest, to Iron Chef, to host on the Food Network, the Food Channel, and ABC co-host, his starpower is undeniable!
So, becoming a bestselling author seemed a natural!
Teaming up with folks from the culinary and publishing worlds, Chef Symon coauthored over a dozen books. The two Michaels (Symon and James Beard award winning food author, Michael Ruhlman) collaborated on Michael Symon’s Live to Cook. Likewise, a series of cookbooks were published with his co-stars from The Chew.
A celebrity spokesperson (or spokeschef ?), Chef Symon has represented cookware companies Vitamix and Calphalon. He also partnered with Weston Products to create his official specialty kitchenware product line. The Michael Symon Live to Cook Collection by Weston was a byproduct of his successful book with Ruhlman. Chef Symon also had a signature cutlery line through Ergo Chef for a time.
Chef Symon’s Foundation: Feeding Folks and More
As a result of his public profile, Michael and his wife, Liz, have used his celebrity to champion charity.
In 2010, they created The Michael D. Symon Foundation. Its mission: To assist members of the Cleveland culinary community and charities supported by the restaurant and hospitality professions.
The Foundation has been part of the team behind the Cleveland Chef’s Gala for Autism Speaks.
Food-related organizations supported by Chef Symon’s Foundation have included Cleveland area food banks. In addition, they’ve has teamed up with No Kid Hungry, City Harvest, and the Salvation Army.
These, and other groups, work on the front lines of the hunger crisis in the United States. Most of these are highly rated by Charity Navigator—a nonprofit committed to objective assessment of charitable institutions.
Moreover, most of these organizations are also supported by me and have been featured in the Pass the Plate section of this website.
How About YOU!
Have a great personal story about Michael Symon? What’s your favorite Symon-inspired recipe, restaurant, book, show, or quote? Have autoimmune or other health issues affected your lifestyle? Have you found a diet that helps you?
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