Lidia Bastianich has been a staple in the food community for well over 2 decades. Having worked with greats like Julia Childs, there’s no wonder she’s been around for so long.  Aside from being an award winning television host she is also a best-selling author, restaurant owner, philanthropist along with many other titles.

Born Lidia Matticchio in Pula, Croatia in 1947, her family eventually moved to the U.S in 1958. In 1971 she and her husband opened their first restaurant named “Buonavia” in  Queens. With the success of their first restaurant she eventually went on to open more with great success. By 1998 she was offered her first television show by PBS titled Lidia’s Italian Table and would gone on to host many others after that.

Lidia Bastianich is active with various philanthropy causes and has worked with the Italian American Committee on Education to help promote the study of Italian culture. With positive people like this in their organization there’s no wonder PBS has been around for so long. I look forward to future projects from them both.