Guy Fieri Shares the Story of Meeting His Wife Lori After Letting Go of Her Friend

Guy and Lori Fieri.
Credit:

Guy Fieri/Instagram

Key Details

• Guy Fieri revealed the story of meeting his wife Lori on the podcast In Depth with Graham Bensinger.
• The Food Network star mentioned he had recently fired Lori’s friend, who came in to collect a paycheck.
• He described being “mesmerized” by Lori and stated, “I’m gonna marry that girl.”

Celebrity chef Guy Fieri recently recounted the surprising circumstances surrounding his first encounter with wife Lori during an episode of the podcast In Depth with Graham Bensinger, released on December 15.

Fieri shared that their meeting occurred when he was managing Parkers’ Lighthouse, a restaurant in Los Angeles, two years after completing his college education.

“I had fired her friend,” Fieri explained, adding that a policy prevented anyone who had been terminated from entering the restaurant for 30 days. On a bustling Friday night, however, the recently fired employee walked in, prompting a tense exchange.

“She’s like, ‘I’m going upstairs.’ I’m like, ‘No, no, you can’t come in here. You’ve been fired,’” said Fieri. The employee retorted that she was only there to collect her paycheck, to which Fieri agreed to assist.

Hunter, Guy, Lori and Ryder Fieri.

Anders Krusberg/Food Network

At that moment, Fieri noticed Lori standing behind her friend. “Well, standing behind her is this little blonde girl with these just beautiful blue eyes. And she’s just mean-mugging me,” he recalled.

Fieri then instructed the pair to sit at the downstairs bar while he fetched the check. He reflected on being captivated by Lori, stating, “I’m just mesmerized by this girl. What the f—?”

When a mutual friend inquired about his interest, Fieri learned that Lori was moving to San Diego from Rhode Island. He declared, “I said, ‘I’m gonna marry that girl.’” His friend shocked him with the reminder of his existing relationship, saying, “You have a girlfriend,” but Fieri remained adamant.

“We married in 1995 and welcomed two sons: Hunter, now 29, and Ryder, now 19,” he shared.

The Fieri family grew this year with Hunter’s marriage to Tara Bernstein. In an interview, Bernstein described Guy Fieri as a “super big on being family-oriented” individual, emphasizing the joy of spending quality time together, especially during the holidays.

“Everyone has crazy busy lives, but it’s so important to just spend that quality time,” she added, highlighting the familial values shared by both her parents and the Fieri family.