Chef Isaac Toups Wiki, Age, Bio, Wife, Family, Net Worth, Mother, Top Chef, Height, Instagram

Isaac Toups Biography – Isaac Toups Wiki

Isaac Toups is an American chef and owner of two of the most highly regarded restaurants in New Orleans: Toups Meatery and Toups South. He was a contestant and finalist on season 13 of Bravo TV’s “Top Chef.” He returned to Bravo TV with a cooking competition of his own, the digital series, Isaac Takes On…

Born and raised in Rayne, the “Frog Capital of the World,” Toups cut his teeth with 10 years in the kitchen at Emeril Lagasse’s Delmonico, rising from fry cook to executive sous chef. He also had stints as executive chef at Cuvée and Ste. Marie. In the Spring of 2012, Chef Isaac Toups and his wife Amanda opened Toups’ Meatery, where he serves crowds of locals sophisticated Cajun cuisine that honors the boils, boucheries, and barbecues of his childhood. Since opening Toups’ Meatery, Chef Isaac Toups has been nominated for the prestigious James Beard Foundation award for Best Chef: South as well as other notable accolades. In fall 2016, Toups and Amanda opened a second restaurant, Toups South – an expression of regional southern cuisine within New Orleans’ Southern Food and Beverage Museum.

In addition to being a 2016 James Beard Foundation “Best Chef South” Finalist & Semifinalist in 2017, 2015 & 2014 respectively, Chef Isaac’s accolades include: 20 Great Modern Meateries by The Wall Street Journal; Emeril Lagasse’s New Orleans, Guide in Food & Wine Magazine; Young Guns of the South by Eater Awards; 100 Best Restaurants in the South, and Top 10 Best Restaurants in New Orleans Southern Living; 2014 Chef of the Year Eater New Orleans; Chefs to Watch – Louisiana Cookin’; Best New Restaurant by Brett Anderson, New Orleans Times-Picayune; CNN’s Situation Room: CNN turns to Chef Isaac Toups; and Bravo TV’s “Top Chef” season 13 contestant and finalist.

He also has his own Food Network show, “Kitchen Takeover,” in which he tries to fix failing restaurants. In the first episode, which premiered on Aug. 3, 2019, he tried to help a New Orleans and Cajun-themed restaurant outside Atlanta called Margarita Momma’s Bourbon St. Grille.

Chef and Louisiana native Isaac Toups co-authored with Jennifer V. Cole the cookbook, “Chasing the Gator: Isaac Toups & The New Cajun Cooking,” that has been chosen for the New York Times Best List. The cookbook is a love letter to Cajun country his birthplace and the inspiration for his New Orleans restaurants he and his wife Amanda run — Toups’ Meatery in Mid-City and Toups South in Central City.

Isaac Toups Top Chef

Isaac Toups was a finalist on season 13 of Bravo TV’s “Top Chef.” He did not cinch the title of Top Chef during season 13, but he was voted a fan favorite earning him a bonus of $10,000.

Isaac Toups Age

He was born on June 17, 1979, in Rayne, Louisiana, United States. He is 42 years old.

Isaac Toups Parents – Isaac Toups Mother

Isaac Toups’ parents are Brent and Esther Toups. His father Brent, a dentist from the swamp Cajun town of Thibodaux, and his mother Esther, from the prairie Cajun town of Oakdale, set down roots on a family farm in Rayne, Louisiana.

They raised their kids to hunt and fish and cook. They also instilled an early, broader curiosity about food. Toups remembers that when the area’s first sushi bar arrived in Lafayette, his family was there on opening night. If his dad spotted a Vietnamese grocery on a road trip outside of Rayne, a detour would surely ensue.

Isaac Toups Wife

Is Isaac Toups married? He is married to his wife, Amanda Toups. Chef Isaac Toups and his wife Amanda run two restaurants in New Orleans, Toups’ Meatery and Toups South. “Me and Manda, my wife, work with each other and it’s a working relationship, and it is difficult but it is very rewarding. At the end of the day, it’s ours, and that’s both rewarding and scary,” Toups said in an interview.

In a 2018 interview with Robyn Caire of Loyola University New Orleans, Toups said about his wife: “My wife is my greatest muse. I don’t write anything down, so she tends to remember all my dishes of the past and like “Oh, why don’t you do something like that?” And then I’ll take that idea and like, “Oh wait, but I just got these curry leaves and we can make a curry oxtail ragout.” So my wife is my greatest muse. She’s also my number one critic, and if she doesn’t like something, I get told. I can be working on something for a week, have her taste it and like, “Nah, it needs work.” And I’ve got to go kick something, and then calm myself down ‘cause I realize she’s just being honest with me, and that’s what you need.”

Toups met Amanda through his best friend during his brief tour of college at USL (now UL). “They were in an art class together and he was like, “Hey, come over, smoke a joint.” And she comes over and smokes a joint, and she’s just eyeing me up, just eyeing me up and down,” Toups said in the same interview. “And I’ve got a girlfriend at the time, but you know, I’m 20 so I’m like, “Hey, whatever.” But, long story short, break up with my girlfriend, she swoops in like a hawk and puts it on me and we’ve been together ever since. I think after a couple of months of that, it was just like, “Hey, do you wanna go out to eat?” And then we were dating like that.”

Isaac Toups Children

Chef Isaac Toups and his wife, Amanda Toups, have two children.

Isaac Toups Family

Chef Isaac grew up in Cajun country in Rayne, Louisiana. He is the son of Brent and Esther Toups, and the grandson of Eva and Lester. The Toups family has lived in South Louisiana for more than 300 years.

“I fought my heritage, I wanted to cook contemporary food like my peers,” Toups said. “I would hide my accent until I hardly have one anymore, until I go home or get drunk.”

Isaac Toups Net Worth

Isaac Toups’s net worth is estimated to be $10 million. He is the owner of two of the most highly regarded restaurants in New Orleans: Toups Meatery and Toups South.

Isaac Toups Instagram

Isaac Toups’ Instagram handle is @toupsmeatery.