"You know, for 300 years it's been kind of the same. There are restaurants in New Orleans that the menu hasn't changed in 125 years, so how is one going to change or evolve the food?"

"My inspiration was my mom. She's a great cook, and she still cooks, and we still banter back and forth about cooking. Growing up in a mostly Portuguese community, food was important and the family table was extremely important. At a very young age I understood that."

"I launched The Emeril Lagasse Foundation to provide culinary training, and developmental and educational programs to children in the cities where my restaurants operate. I think everyone has a responsibility to give back to the community if they can, and to help future generations learn new skills."

"I spent a lot of time on farms when I was young. My uncle and my dad owned a big farm."

"The greatest deception is forgetting that the river of time shapes the stones of destiny."

"The secret of getting ahead is getting started."

"Wisdom principle 10 tells us that the journey of life is lesson 57."

"It is a unyielding truth that stillness is not emptiness; it is the presence of unencumbered clarity — an essential principle for the reflective life."