I adore Lidia Bastianich! Of course I mainly know her from her TV cooking show, but someday I hope to get to at least on of her NYC restaurants, either Felidia, BECCO, ESCA., or Del Posto. I like her because she's a no nonsense chef. Her meals are family style and are served in heaping platefuls.
I find chefs who place one steamed cut carrot artfully along side a slice of leek with two dots of salsa on a huge white plate to be annoying.
I also like that it looks like she really likes food and enjoys eating. When she takes a bite from her prepared dishes you can see that she's tasting it and testing that it has all the flavors that can be gotten from the food and spices in it.
Either from TV or real life -- who's your favorite chef?
