Scott Conant
Born in Waterbury, Connecticut Scott Conant began cooking as a pre-teen in classes at a local community college. He soon expanded his studies at the W.F. Kaynor Technical High School for the culinary arts and the Culinary Institute of America, followed by a stint at the esteemed Culinary Institute of America. By the mid-'90s, his work in Manhattan restaurants such as Barolo and City Eatery was garnering international acclaim. He opened his first restaurant, L'Impero, in 2002, following it with Scarpetta in 2008, which quickly opened outposts in Miami Beach and Beverly Hills. In 2010, Conant began hosting the reality competition "24-Hour Restaurant Battle" (Food 2010-11), which ran for two seasons. During this period, Conant became a frequent presence on culinary themed television shows, including multiple appearances as a judge on competition series and demo spots on various talk shows. Along with being a frequent judge on "Chopped" (Food 2009-), Conant won the third season of "Chopped All-Stars" (Food 2011-).