Eric Ripert

When I see someone who has responsibilities, most of the time I can pinpoint that person because of the way he carries himself.

A lot of foreign people say, when asking about eating habits, 'What is your guilty pleasure?' I have no guilt. Whatever I do, I enjoy and it's the point. I think if you start to feel guilty about it, that's a problem. So, no guilty pleasures. I have pleasure and no guilt at all.

To me, it's very important to have time at the restaurant but also time with family and time for myself.

I like the dynamic of PBS. They're very honest and authentic.

Factory farming's evil; you know that.

When you are 25, 30, you know, you have no responsibility, no mortgage, no kids, no retirement to think about, nothing.

I come from a family of farmers on both sides of my family.

It took me all my life to learn how to salt a tomato.

Chefs are leaders in their own little world.

Cooks build muscles; we can stand all day long on our feet and not feel the pain.

You don't become a chef to become famous.

The nature of human beings is to eat meat and fruits and vegetables, and therefore we have to kill animals. I don't have a problem with that. But it's a sacred moment. It's a gift of life.

If you can't think like an onion or a carrot or a tomato, you may be a technician, but you won't understand what you're doing, and your dish will be flat.

I am not a picture guy. I like to live in the present and keep the image of the past vivid in my mind. I don't need the precision of the picture.

I just find the world very exciting and beautiful everywhere.

I'm very inspired by other cultures and very often use what I perceive to be exotic ingredients.

I'm fascinated by Japanese cuisine.

I see a lot of people who change careers in the middle of their life and they think it's a good idea to come in the kitchen.

Nobody wants an ugly book.

I find the organic wave much more interesting in America than in France.

California is lucky, the East Coast is lucky because we get great seafood and a lot of produce from Florida, locally in good weather, but in the winter we have to buy it.

In a professional kitchen, the idea is to have your cooks not moving much while they're cooking. You want them to stay in the same spot.

America is a such a melting pot, I'm not sure if roast chicken is the classic comfort food for everybody.