Who Is Jacques Torres?
Here are 12 things you need to know about the chocolatier and Nailed It judge.
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Jacques Torres might be the judge of a made-for-amateurs cooking show (Nailed It!, on Netflix now), but he's about as professional as it gets in the world of baking. The chocolatier has worked with some of the best chefs in the world, and has eight chocolate stores bearing his name in New York City. Here's everything you need to know about the man delivering some of the best frozen hot chocolate in the city.
He's from France.
Jacques, who turned 59 in June, grew up in the South of France in a little town called Bandol.
He got his start in pastry.
Jacque knew he wanted to work in food from a young age. When he was just 15, he had his first apprenticeship at the top pastry shop in Bandol.
His first major job was with another Jacques.
In 1980, 21-year-old Jacques started working with two-star Michelin chef Jacques Maximin at Hotel Negresco. He spent several years there, and eventually became the executive pastry chef of the Nice, France hotel.
He came to the U.S. to work at another famous hotel.
Jacques was the corporate pastry chef for Ritz-Carlton Hotels from 1998 to 1989. He worked in the Atlanta, GA headquarters before taking a position as Executive Pastry Chef at NYC's famed restaurant Le Cirque. He's continued a relationship with the hotel chain, though — in 2017, Jacques was a guest chef during a Weekend Getaway at the Ritz's Dorado Beach Resort with chefs Eric Ripert and Tim Love.
He’s married to a fellow chocolatier.
This couple's got a serious sweet tooth. Both Hasty and Jacques, who got married in 2007, started their own chocolate businesses. Hasty founded Madame Chocolat in Beverly Hills that same year, but closed it in 2012 to move to New York.
He has the sweetest relationship with his son.
Jacques "little bonbon," Pierre, was born in August 2016. Scroll through his mom and dad's feed and it's clear to see — this little man is his parents' pride and joy. Their road to children was tough — in 2014, the couple opened up about their heartbreaking miscarriage. After Pierre was born, Hasty wrote: "He's perfection and has given my life true meaning. The love I have for him is indescribable."
He's a real life Willy Wonka.
Jacques opened his first chocolate store and factory in Brooklyn, NY back in 2000. Now, he has eight stores across NYC, including two ice cream shops.
People call him Mr. Chocolate.
He knows his stuff, but he's not a snob about it. His famous chocolate chip cookies are based off the Nestle Tollhouse Recipe!
He's the head judge on "Nailed It."
The first season of Jacques' not-so-serious cooking series, Nailed It, went live on Netflix March 9. A second season, featuring more home bakers attempting to recreate confectionary masterpieces, is already in the works.
And this isn't his first time on the small screen.
Jacques hosted a 52-episode series called Dessert Circus With Jacques Torres on public television, then launched a two-season show called Chocolate with Jacques Torres on the Food Network. He's also written three cookbooks, including 2008's A Year in Chocolate.
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He's the man behind the chocolate museum.
If you've stepped foot into New York City's Chocolate Museum, you have Jacques to thank. He opened the 5,000-square-foot space in 2017, bringing together a history of chocolate, tastings, and more.
He's shaping the next generation of bakers.
Jacques is the Dean of Pastry Arts at the International Culinary Center. He's not just a figurehead — the chef designed the curriculum for the Fast Track Professional Pastry Arts program.
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