Ina Garten Reveals Why She Never Wanted Kids & Says Jeffrey Would Have Made A 'Great Parent' (2025)

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Ina Garten Reveals Why She Never Wanted Kids & Says Jeffrey Would Have Made A 'Great Parent'? ›

"He would have really loved having children, but he wanted to make me happy and it was okay with him," she revealed. Jeffrey has also been a supportive partner in more ways than one. Garten's longtime husband was actually a driving force behind her culinary career path.

Ina Garten Says Her 'Terrible Childhood' Is Why She Never Wanted Kids, Says Jeffrey Would Have Made A 'Great Parent'

Born Ina Rosenberg to a Jewish family in Brooklyn, New York City and grew up in Stamford, Connecticut, Garten was one of two children born to Charles H. Rosenberg, a surgeon specializing in otolaryngology, and his wife, Florence (née Rich), a dietitian.

Currently, Jeffrey serves as the Dean Emeritus at the Yale School of Management and teaches courses on the global economy. According to his faculty page, prior to joining Yale, he worked for multiple White House administrations, served in the U.S. Army Special Forces and was a managing director on Wall Street.

According to Celebrity Net Worth, Ina Garten's net worth in 2024 is estimated at $60 million. When combined with that of her husband Jeffrey, that amount is estimated at a whopping $120 million.

Ina husband, Jeffrey, is also a financial powerhouse. According to Celebritynetworth.com, Jeffrey is worth $100 million, mostly thanks to his former jobs as managing director of Lehman Brothers and Blackstone Group.

Barefoot Contessa closed permanently in 2004, but Ms. Garten still owns the building. The move was announced during a live taping of “The Drew Barrymore Show,” which aired yesterday on CBS.

Garten is Jewish by birth and heritage, as is her husband, but rarely refers to her religion and ethnicity, though they are showcased through the inclusion of classic Jewish cooking in her television show and cookbooks, when she makes such dishes as rugelach, challah, and brisket.

The divisive herb cilantro

During an interview on Vice's "Munchies: The Podcast", Garten revealed that cilantro is actually one of her most hated foods. While she hates the flavor of cilantro, she also feels it steals too much of the spotlight. "I know people love it and you can add it to the recipe. I just hate it.

Ina Garten dropped out of college after she married Jeffrey.

After they married, Ina and Jeffrey Garten settled in North Carolina after Jeffrey enlisted in the Army. Garten then decided to discontinue her studies at Syracuse University and focused on cooking for her husband.

Why is Contessa barefoot? ›

Before Ina purchased the shop in 1978, the previous owners had dubbed it the Barefoot Contessa, inspired by the 1954 Ava Gardner and Humphrey Bogart movie of the same name. Ina decided to keep the name after taking ownership, according to People.com.

In 1978, shortly after she turned 30, Garten gave up her DC life and decided to buy a small specialty food shop called Barefoot Contessa.

Is she barefoot? Garten, to our knowledge, is not an actual countess (contessa is Italian for countess) and is usually wearing shoes (normally flats) on her show. The name of the show comes from a specialty food store she bought in 1978, after her stint as a nuclear policy analyst in the White House.

Their work has previously appeared in the Kitchn, TODAY Digital and Insider. Ina Garten never wanted children — and her husband Jeffrey Garten supported that decision.

Her fame may be relatively quiet — she doesn't have a line of cookware, there isn't a namesake restaurant — but make no mistake: Ina Garten is a powerhouse celeb chef.

Tour Ina Garten's New $4.65 Million Park Avenue Home | Architectural Digest.

Ina Garten, chef and host of the Food Network show “Barefoot Contessa,” has been taking heat for twice rejecting a child's Make-a-Wish request. The child's wish was to meet Garten because he would watch her show from his sickbed.

Garten is Jewish by birth and heritage, as is her husband, but rarely refers to her religion and ethnicity, though they are showcased through the inclusion of classic Jewish cooking in her television show and cookbooks, when she makes such dishes as rugelach, challah, and brisket.

Flay and Garten have been friends and colleagues for decades, so it's no surprise that Flay has such respect for her person and her cooking. And Garten has returned that love in kind. In an interview with the Food Network, Garten waxed impressed about the staggering achievements and stamina of Flay.

Garten likes to avoid messy clean-up

According to CheatSheet, Garten said, "I don't like wearing an apron when I'm working, so I find a denim shirt or a corduroy shirt and I buy 25 of them. It's like a uniform and I don't have to worry about it.