Bobby Flay and Giada De Laurentiis are two of the most popular celebrity chefs on the planet. The pair have known each other for nearly 20 years and their onscreen collaborations prove they have plenty of chemistry. But what’s their relationship like when the cameras aren’t rolling? Are Bobby Flay and Giada dating? Here’s our investigation into these relationship rumors.
How Bobby And Giada Became Close Friends
Bobby Flay was already a well-established celebrity chef when he met Giada in 2004. According to People magazine, they met at a food expo in Philadelphia not long after De Laurentiis started hosting her first Food Network show, Everyday Italian. The pair hit it off (obviously, they had similar interests!) and have been close ever since. De Laurentiis says Flay is a loyal and loving friend who always has her back.
“I think that Bobby is one of those people that if you are his friend, he has your back forever and he will stand up for you,” she told People. “He’s one of those guys you can call in a pinch and he will get you out of it. He’s special in that sense.”
De Laurentiis and Flay have teamed up on-screen a number of times over the years. In 2006, they competed together on an episode of Iron Chef America against fellow celebrity chefs Mario Batali and Rachael Ray. (Unfortunately, they lost). They also starred together as judges on seasons seven, eight, and nine of Food Network Star. In 2021, the duo worked together on Bobby and Giada in Italy, a streaming series for discovery+ that followed the pair on a month-long exploration of Tuscany and Rome.
A Feud Almost Destroyed Their Friendship
Despite their instant connection, De Laurentiis admits that she and Flay had a brief falling out after losing to Mario Batali and Rachael Ray on Iron Chef America.
“We lost and he thought it was funny,” the Behind the Bash host said in a 2021 interview with the Beyond the Plate podcast (as reported by People). “He didn’t think it was any big deal that we lost. I thought, you know, I took this very seriously. It was a very big show, especially at that time, and I’ve cooked, I’ve gone to culinary school, I worked on my own dish all by myself and I felt like he sort of half-assed it. I did not talk to him for eight months‚ eight months! I did not. Nothing. Silence.”
Fortunately, De Laurentiis eventually came to her senses and patched things up with the Boy Meets Grill star.
Are Bobby And Giada Dating?
So here’s the answer to the question you’re really curious about—Flay and De Laurentiis are not dating! Rumors of a romance started popping up around 2015 after both chefs went through divorces on similar timelines. And fans continue to ship the pair, especially after watching them tour Italy together on their discovery+ show.
But the truth of the matter is that they are not romantically involved. Flay, who split from his second wife, actress Stephanie March, in 2015, dated actress Heléne Yorke from 2016 until around 2019. Since 2020, he’s been in a relationship with writer Christina Pérez. “She’s so lovely. I’m really happy to have met her,” Flay said of his girlfriend on an episode of Throwdown With Michael Symo (as reported by People). “My life is so crazy hectic, and she’s always the light at the end of the day for me.”
De Laurentiis is also involved in a long-term relationship. About a year after her marriage to fashion designer Todd Thomas ended in 2014, she began dating TV producer Shane Farley. In fact, Flay was partially responsible for their connection, as the couple met when Farley was hired to produce a show for De Laurentiis and Flay that never made it to air.
De Laurentiis and Farley are still going strong today and clearly adore each other. “Shane’s a lot of fun,” Giada said in a 2018 People magazine interview. “He’s very spontaneous and loves to laugh.”
Farley has also become close with Jade, De Laurentiis’s 14-year-old daughter. “I do not have children and to be able to have such a well-adjusted, fun kid around has been really nice,” he told People magazine. “She’s just a great child. She’s smart. She’s funny. She’s adorable.”
