Even in her wildest dreams, Emily Hersh never imagined she would end up cooking in one of the biggest kitchens and on one of the most-watched shows in America.
Her road to Hell’s Kitchen started at Huebner Elementary School.
Her love for food began in the cafeteria and grew from there.
“I usually brought my lunch from home, so days I got to get something from the cafeteria were really special,” said Hersh. “Pizza Day or Enchilada Day was my favorite. Oh, and the cookies and brownies. I had a bit of sweet tooth.”
After that, she went to Eisenhower middle school.
She got involved with volleyball and orchestra.
“It really helped me experience things outside my bubble.”
Her time at Eisenhower also gave her some foundational lessons to go up against the infamous Gordon Ramsay.
“That’s really where I learned to work really hard and never give up,” said Hersh. “That’s where I had a really tough volleyball coach. Coach Belinda Jeffcoat, who I have to attest to for Hell’s Kitchen because she really gave me a thick skin. She was one of those coaches who was really hard on you on the court, but off the court, she loves on you and really supports you. I still stay in touch with her to this day.”
Her next big lesson came during her time at Churchill High School.
She spent her life up to this point being a dancer. She was captain of the Lancer Dancers. And while she led them to win state during her senior year, she had to learn a tough lesson about staying strong and not giving up.
On the way to the state championship, she learned she didn’t get into the University of Texas at Austin. Coach Brooke McGilloway recognized the disappointment.
“I was devastated, and she pulled me aside and got me through that; even though it wasn’t about dance, it was about life,” said Hersh. “She was probably the only person out of family and who could get me out of that slump. She was the person who taught me to never to give up. It was just a testament to all those teachers in NEISD who helped us inside and outside of school.”
Hersh eventually made it to UT and on to their dance team. She didn’t give up. But, she also didn’t see a future in dance.
“Dance at the collegiate level, it became about body image and less about dance,” said Hersh. “I developed an eating disorder from it. Once I got out of that environment. I found a really big passion. My fears for food turned into a love for food.”
Her love focused on plant-based eating. She attended the Natural Gourmet Institute in New York and then went to work in one of the best plant-based kitchens in America, Dirty Candy.
Then, she got the call to be the first plant-based chef on Hell’s Kitchen: Young Guns.
“It was a really cool experience,” said Hersh. “I was 22, competing with other young chefs to be the head chef at one of Gordon Ramsay’s restaurants in Las Vegas.”
Throughout her time on the show, she remembered lessons learned during her time at NEISD.
How to take tough love and criticism.
How to create a support system.
How to believe in herself.
“Really stick to who you are. You are important, and you are unlike anybody else in this world. If you hold on to that confidence and love for yourself. You are on this earth to do something amazing. You can get through it,” said Hersh. “If Gordon Ramsay yells at me, that’s going to be pretty cool; not a lot of people can say that Gordon screamed in your face.”
You can see Chef Emily Hersh compete on this season of Hell’s Kitchen: Young Guns starting May 31, at 7 p.m. on FOX.
To find out more about Emily and keep up with all the cool things she’s doing, now go to www.chefemilyhersh.com.
