Carla Hall
Carla Hall is a chef, author and host sharing Southern food, baking and kitchen conversations through books, television and Chewed Up.
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Latest
Carla’s happenings, collected from public sources, plus her backstory and Starbook, where fans write.
Known for
- Top Chef: All-Stars2011 · Contestant and fan favorite
Bravo - The Chew2011–2018 · Co-host
ABC - Carla Hall’s Soul Food: Everyday and Celebration2018 · Author
Cookbook - Chasing Flavor2024 · Host
Max - Chewed Up2025 · Co-host with Clinton Kelly and Michael Symon
YouTube - Carla Bakes: Sweet, Savory, and from the Heart2026 · Author
4 Color Books
Overview
- Hometown
- Nashville, Tennessee
- Education
- Accounting at Howard University; culinary training at L’Academie de Cuisine
- Before food
- Accounting and runway modeling
- Breakout
- Top Chef, season 5, in 2008
- On her bookshelf
- Cookbooks and children’s picture books
Mini bio
How it started.
Carla came to cooking after careers in accounting and modeling. Away from home, she missed the Southern food she grew up with and began experimenting in the kitchen. Her food career included The Lunch Bunch, selling lunches to offices before culinary school.
Finding her audience.
Top Chef introduced Carla to a national audience in 2008. She later returned for All-Stars, then joined The Chew in 2011 and spent seven years cooking and talking with its hosts. Her guiding idea, cooking with love, runs through her work.
Food with a story.
Her 2018 cookbook Carla Hall’s Soul Food puts everyday dishes alongside celebration food. On Chasing Flavor, she followed familiar American dishes across borders to explore the people and cultures behind them. Children’s books draw on her Nashville childhood, while Chewed Up brings her back together with Clinton Kelly and Michael Symon.
A wider table.
In 2026 she added a baking book and an autobiographical solo play to her work. Away from the kitchen, she advocates for better nutrition and supports organizations serving young people, older adults and underserved communities.
Creditschronological, newest first
Television and online
- 2025Next Level BakerMentor and judge
- 2025Chewed UpCo-host and co-owner
- 2024Chasing FlavorHost
- 2011–2018The ChewCo-host
- 2010–2011Top Chef: All-StarsContestant
Books
- 2026Carla Bakes: Sweet, Savory, and from the HeartAuthor, with Lauren Chattman
- 2025Carla and the Tin Can Cake PartyAuthor; illustrated by Cherise Harris
- 2018Carla Hall’s Soul Food: Everyday and CelebrationAuthor
Stage
- 2026Please Underestimate MePerformer and co-writer
Awards
Quotes
Say ‘yes’, adventure follows, then growthCarla Hall, official keynote page
Her guiding principle, shared at https://carlahall.com/keynote-discovering-your-authentic-self/
Trivia
- Her first car was an orange AMC Gremlin.
- She uses puzzles and coloring books to relax.
- She and her husband still use the “hootie hoo” call fans know from Top Chef.
- She said she was starstruck when she met Carol Burnett.
Find Carla
Follow her recipes, kitchen conversations and latest projects.
Are you Carla Hall?
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