How a Famous Foodie Got His Start

By COLLEEN DEBAISE

Since stumbling upon cooking at age 17, Bobby Flay has opened a cadre of restaurants—from New York's venerable Mesa Grill to Bobby's Burger Palaces, a chain of casual-dining eateries. And he's become a cookbook author, Food Network star and Iron Chef along the way. Mr. Flay, 46 years old, credits much of his prolific career to timing, powerful mentors and a good deal of chance. As a judge and investor on NBC's "America's Next Great Restaurant," he plans to fund an aspiring restaurateur's dreams when the show wraps May 1.

Edited interview excerpts follow.

Ben Fink

Bobby Flay

Q. How did you get your start at such a young age?

A. I dropped out of high school. I really had no interest in doing any school work whatsoever. My father, who is very much a scholarly guy, said: "Well, you're going to have to get a job then." Two days later, he called and said the bus boy at a restaurant where he was a partner [Joe Allen, in New York's Theatre District] needed two weeks off to visit his sick grandmother. I was told to fill in.

Q. What happened after two weeks, when the bus boy came back?

A. I was literally walking out of the restaurant and the chef said, "Do you want to work in the kitchen?" And I said, "Sure." It was because I had nothing else to do that day. If I had plans with friends, I probably would have said no. I wasn't desperate to work in the kitchen.

Q. So you didn't have dreams as a kid of becoming a chef?

A. No! This was 1981—food and America hadn't had its renaissance yet.

Q. When did you take a liking to cooking?

A. I remember waking up one morning, staring at the ceiling, and thinking: "Wait, I really want to do this today." Something clicked. I had been so disinterested in doing school work. I finally found something I could do with my hands that was productive.

Q. You did go back to school a short time later, enrolling in the French Culinary Institute's six-month program at age 18.

A. It was not my favorite thing. But I knew this was my last chance without my father killing me. It gave me a foundation forever. I utilize things I learned in FCI every day.

Q. What was your first job, post-FCI?

A. I was hired as a sous-chef at a restaurant on the Upper East Side. The chef liked to drink—some mornings we would find him sleeping [on the floor]. Two weeks after its opening, I became the chef. I was 20 years old, and way over my head. I had to hire the cooks and do the menus. I did it for a year, but I thought, I need to know how to cook better.

Q. You went to work for Jonathan Waxman, then one of New York's hottest chefs. How did that happen?

A. I was at a cocktail party at the French Culinary Institute. This woman Gail Arnold met me—she was the chef at Bud's (a Waxman restaurant) and I said: "I would love to work there." And she said OK.

Q. Just like that?

A. It's easier than you think it is to get a job. I said to her: "I will promise you this, I will give you 120%. Just tell me what to do." Today, when I hire, I look for people who want to be trained and molded.

Q. You wound up working at three of Waxman's restaurants—what did you learn?

A. That was the first time I had seen Southwestern ingredients, like blue corn meal and chile peppers. I fell in love with the flavors, the colors, the textures. It became the palette that I reach for always.

Q. You solidified your reputation when you opened Mesa Grill in New York, in 1991 at age 26—how did that opportunity arise?

A. Jerry Kretchmer [the New York restaurateur] had just come back from a trip to the Southwest, probably because he wants to be a cowboy. And he asked around—who cooks really good Southwest food? So he heard about me, and he asked if I wanted to open a restaurant with him and I said yes.

Q. Did you have to come up with the start-up capital?

A. No—he and another partner, Jeff Bliss, took responsibility for raising the money. I think it was a bank loan. I didn't have to sign it. I was bringing sweat equity.

Q. A few years later, you started to appear on TV—what drew you to that?

A. The Food Network was just starting in New York, and I was getting lots of attention from Mesa Grill. They had no money, so if you couldn't get there by subway, you couldn't be on. It wasn't like TV was something I really wanted to do—but I knew it would be great publicity for my restaurants.

Q. Which has been your most successful restaurant?

A. In terms of revenue, it's between Bar Americain in New York, Mesa Grill in Vegas and and Bobby Flay Steak in Atlantic City. But they're also the biggest restaurants.

Q. If you had to streamline everything you do—and pick just one thing—what would it be?

A. Standing in a kitchen in my whites, cooking. Period. No question.

Q. How is "America's Next Great Restaurant" doing?

A. The ratings are moderate, but they're not off the charts. It's in a bad time spot. But I'm definitely happy with the show.

Q. What advice would you give an aspiring restaurateur?

A. Have twice as much capital as you think you need. If you think it's going to take eight months to build the restaurant, know that it's twice that. Expect the unexpected. It will ultimately happen, whether it's the health department [coming in], or the chef quits, or the gas line doesn't work. And go slow. Don't try to feed 300 people the first night. You want to be a good restaurant for 20 years, not 20 weeks.

Write to Colleen DeBaise at colleen.debaise@wsj.com