Rick Bayless

In 2012, Bayless ventured into the world of theatre, partnering with Lookingglass Theatre Company in Chicago to put on the play Rick Bayless in Cascabel, which Bayless created along with Tony Hernandez and Heidi Stillman. The show opened on March 21, 2012 to favorable reviews and ran through April 29.

Also in 2012, Rick Bayless secured his first Daytime Emmy Nomination for Outstanding Lifestyle/Culinary Host for his work on Season 8 of Mexico: One Plate at a Time.

In 2010, after having spent significant time at local Mexican dining spots, Bayless made his Los Aangeles debut running the kitchen at the Red O.

Bayless was guest chef for the May 19, 2010, White House state dinner honoring Mexican President Felipe Calderón and his wife Margarita Zavala.

Bayless appeared as a guest judge in episode 3 of Season 4's Top Chef, judging both the quickfire and elimination challenges. He later went on to become a contestant in episode 3 of the first season of Top Chef Masters, winning that episode and advancing to the Champion's round. In the championship round he won the title of Top Chef Master on August 19, 2009.

In 2008, Bayless was widely considered to be a serious contender for the position of White House Executive Chef under the administration of Barack Obama.

In December 2007, Bayless opened Frontera Fresco restaurant inside Macy's Union Square store in San Francisco. He later opened Frontera Fresco restaurants inside Macy's State Street store in Chicago, Macy's in nearby Skokie, on the campus of Northwestern University and in Walt Disney World. The San Francisco restaurant closed in April 2014.The Northwestern outlet closed in June 2018 at the end of the school year.

In 2005, Bayless competed on Iron Chef America and lost by one point to Iron Chef Bobby Flay on what was the first broadcast episode of season 1, with American bison meat as the secret ingredient.

Bayless and his staff also began the Frontera Farmer Foundation in 2003. This foundation was set up to support Chicago-area local farmers by offering capital improvement grants. As of 2007, more than $400,000 has been given to local family farms.

In 1995, Rick and partners started the Frontera Foods line of prepared food products. They sold Frontera Foods to ConAgra Foods in 2016. Bayless remains involved as a product-development advisor to the brand. The Frontera restaurants were not included in the deal.

Bayless was born in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, into a family of restaurateurs and grocers specializing in the local barbecue. He is the younger brother of sports journalist and television personality Skip Bayless. Having begun his culinary training as a youth, Bayless broadened his interests to include regional Mexican cooking as an undergraduate student of Spanish and Latin American culture. After finishing his undergraduate education at the University of Oklahoma, he did doctoral work in anthropological linguistics at the University of Michigan and, from 1980 to 1986, lived in Mexico with his wife, Deann, writing his first book, Authentic Mexican: Regional Cooking from the Heart of Mexico.

Before opening his own restaurant, Bayless began his professional career in 1980 as the executive chef at Lopez y Gonzalez, in Cleveland Heights, Ohio. In 1987 Bayless and his wife Deann opened Frontera Grill in Chicago, specializing in contemporary regional Mexican cuisine, with special emphasis on the varied cuisines of the Oaxaca region. In 1989 Rick and Deann opened Topolobampo, one of Chicago's first fine-dining Mexican restaurants. As of 2019, Topolobampo has 1 Michelin star.

After hosting the 26-part PBS television series Cooking Mexican in 1978–1979, Bayless dedicated over six years to culinary research in Mexico, culminating in 1987 with the publication of his Authentic Mexican: Regional Cooking from the Heart of Mexico, which Craig Claiborne described as "the greatest contribution to the Mexican table imaginable." Bayless continues to host his PBS television series, Mexico: One Plate at a Time, now entering Season 11, produced entirely on the Yucatán Peninsula.

Rick Bayless (born November 23, 1953) is an American chef and restaurateur who specializes in traditional Mexican cuisine with modern interpretations. He is widely known for his PBS series Mexico: One Plate at a Time.