I think being Shaquille O'Neal would be the most amazing thing. There's nothing I would have done differently in his life. Everything he's done I think is pretty spot on, even, like, the bad rap videos, the shoes, the movies, everything.

I appreciate people who are happy.

If you ask what people say what American cuisine is, they cannot really do it. I don't know what it is.

When I was in Japan, everyone wanted to work for Pierre Gagnaire, and they wouldn't miss a beat.

Everyone tries to compare cooks to rock stars. I see more comparisons to the fashion world.

One of the benefits to ordering food in New York is that you can get food 24/7.

I want to make simple food new.

I love chicken. I love chicken products: fried chicken, roasted chicken, chicken nuggets - whatever. And going to Japan, I would see that these chicken were smoked and then grilled and then have this amazing crispy skin.

New York gives us a wide colour palette to cook from. We have cuisines from around the world, and that lets us pick and choose.

I look forward to the spring vegetables because the season is so short. Mushrooms, edible foraged herbs, wild leeks, early season asparagus.

I think the basic thing that home cooks can learn how to do is just season properly... If the home cook realized how little salt they use compared to what's needed, it would make their food taste better.

I was quite cocky, but having been hailed as this great young golfer, I couldn't even make the high school golf team once I got there. I had a big dose of humble pie then, and ever since, I've always known that there is always someone out there better than you, more talented. Always.

If people ask me, 'What do you think could improve in Toronto dining,' I'd say there's nothing to improve on.

I doubt I'd ever do television to the extent that, say, Gordon Ramsay has.

I wanted to disprove the notion that you couldn't open a great restaurant in a casino.

I'm not trying to bring New York to Toronto. I want to understand Toronto better.

I love to eat sushi, and, you know, those flavors and wasabi and really eating spoonfuls of it... I would just mix it and put it on everything, literally.

People don't think that bread is part of Asian culture or Asian food culture, but it's quite prevalent in Northern China, and you see it throughout Japan and as you go to Taiwan.

I think that the Japanese - and I do love Japanese cuisine and adore Japanese food culture - I think that they're going to plow through the entire world's fishing. They're going to eat everything anyways.

Cooking and gardening involve so many disciplines: math, chemistry, reading, history.

America is a country of abundance, but our food culture is sad - based on huge portions and fast food. Let's stop with the excuses and start creating something better.

To eat well, I always disagree with critics who say that all restaurants should be fine dining. You can get a Michelin star if you serve the best hamburger in the world.

Open your refrigerator, your freezer, your kitchen cupboards, and look at the labels on your food. You'll find 'natural flavor' or 'artificial flavor' in just about every list of ingredients. The similarities between these two broad categories are far more significant than the differences.

Food, to me, is always about cooking and eating with those you love and care for.