Guy Fieri's First Food Business Was On The Back Of His Bike

Strap those sunglasses to the back of your head, pal — we're taking a trip to Flavortown! Guy Fieri is many things: a restaurateur, television host, and coiner of poetic expressions like "Holy moly, stromboli" and "I've been stricken by chicken" (via Parade). He also might be America's most controversial chef. First We Feast notes that he's earned notably harsh reviews from critics and been scorned by fellow chefs like the late Anthony Bourdain. However, they also argue that Guy holds an important place in culinary media. While many of his Food Network cohorts, such as Bobby Flay and Ina Garten, lean into a luxurious lifestyle, Fieri highlights casual eateries and unpretentious food. In contrast to the serious, fine-dining attitude of his peers, he seems to have a lot more fun in the kitchen.

That down-home attitude was instrumental in launching Fieri's media career. Per Eater, one of the key lines in his audition tape for the "Next Food Network Star" was "I can take the restaurant and bring it to the home." The persuasive video landed Guy a spot in the competition, and in 2006, he won the show's second season, launching his career on the Food Network (via Biography). From that point on, he rocketed to fame at an astounding pace, becoming arguably the face of culinary television. Guy's rise to glory happened in a flash, but the megastar chef has been in the food game for longer than you might think, and his journey had humble origins.

Guy Fieri grew up in the small Northern California town of Ferndale and, by his own admission, his childhood meals were pretty bland. According to Eater, his hippie parents were obsessed with health food, and dinner in the Fieri household consisted of things like, "steamed fish, brown rice, and bulgar." White bread was absolutely out of the question, but Fieri finally got to indulge in some tasty carbohydrates when he was 10 years old on a family vacation to Lake Tahoe. At the ski lodge they visited, a vendor was selling hot pretzels topped with salt and mustard, and young Guy loved them so much, he spent all his allowance on the snacks. Recognizing his son's obsession, Fieri's dad suggested that he make some cash selling pretzels back in Ferndale.

Before they left Tahoe, Fieri went to the pretzel vendor and asked who supplied his snacks, but the vendor refused to cough up the information. Fieri told Variety that he was discouraged, but refused to give up. After the vendor closed for the day, Guy rummaged through their dumpster and found a box revealing the name of the pretzel manufacturer. Once the family returned to Ferndale, Guy and his father built a pretzel cart on the back of a three-wheeled bicycle (via Food Network). This humble business, dubbed "The Awesome Pretzel Cart," was an outstanding success, so much so that Guy kept it going for six whole years.

Guy Fieri's childhood pretzel cart paved the way for his future in the food business in more ways than one. Not only did he gain a passion for the food business, but he also used the money he earned through pretzel sales to kickstart his culinary education. According to Eater, Fieri yearned to visit France, and when he was 15, fortune smiled upon him. He met a Frenchman selling wine corks in the nearby Napa Valley and struck up a written correspondence. Through this connection, Fieri arranged to spend a year studying abroad in Chantilly, using the money he'd saved from selling pretzels to fund his journey. While he was overseas, Fieri fell in love with the culinary industry and decided to commit his life to food.

Though he's come a long way since then, Fieri has not forgotten his roots, nor the valuable lessons he learned from running The Awesome Pretzel Cart. Known for giving back to his community, Fieri now donates pretzel carts to schools through his foundation, CWK (Cooking With Kids). On an episode of "Diners, Drive-Ins, and Dives," Guy went back to his hometown of Ferndale to see how the eighth-grade students at his alma mater were faring with their version of ​​The Awesome Pretzel Cart. They used their pretzel sales to fund a school trip to the state capital of Sacramento, learning fundamental business and marketing skills in the process, just like Guy did.