Anne W. Burrell (born September 21, 1969) is an American chef, TV personality, and instructor at the Institute of Culinary Education in New York City. She is the host of the Food Network show Secrets Of a Restaurant Chef and co-host of Worst Cooks in America, where she is currently undefeated. She is also one of Iron Chef Mario Batali's sous chefs in the Iron Chef America series and appears on other programs on the network such as The Best Thing I Ever Ate. She was a contestant on the fourth season of The Food Network competition show, The Next Iron Chef Super Chefs being eliminated in episode 6. She was also a contestant on the first season of Chopped All-Stars Tournament, winning the "Food Network Personalities" preliminary round to advance to the final round, where she placed second runner up to Nate Appleman (winner) and Aaron Sanchez. Anne is openly lesbian.[2]
After the ICIF experience, Burrell remained in Italy, working in various restaurants for nine months.[3] She worked at La Bottega del '30, a small restaurant in Tuscany with one seating each night.
Burrell returned to the U.S. as a sous chef at Felidia, owned by celebrity chef Lidia Bastianich.[3] The connection with Bastianich would help her career. She became the chef at Savoy, a small prix fixe dining room. After Savoy, Burrell began teaching at the Culinary Institute of America. Lidia Bastianich's son and restaurateur, Joseph Bastianich, and Chef Mario Batali named Burrell the chef for Italian Wine Merchants, their New York wine store.[3] The Batali connection would further propel her career.
She later became the executive chef of Centro Vinoteca, an Italian restaurant in New York City's West Village area which opened in 2007. She left the restaurant in September 2008 due to her busy schedule and many commitments.[7] The departure also meant that she would not start at Gusto Ristorante,[8] as both of the restaurants are part of Mangia Hospitality Group. Burrell planned to open her first restaurant in 2010 in New York City.[9]