RD
Rocco DiSpirito
Actor, Producer
Born November 19, 1966 (57 years)
Rocco DiSpirito (born November 19, 1966) is an American celebrity chef, reality television personality, and cookbook author based in New York City. He is known for his involvement in Union Pacific, a restaurant he opened in 1997 in the Gramercy Park section of Manhattan.
He departed Union Pacific in 2004. From 2003 to 2004, he starred in the NBC reality television show The Restaurant, which followed the launch and operation of a new Manhattan restaurant called Rocco's on 22nd. The show was canceled, and DiSpirito was successfully sued by the restaurant's financier Jeffrey Chodorow to have the restaurant shut down, and DiSpirito banned from entering the premises.
He succeeded Arthur Schwartz as host of Food Talk, an hour-long morning talk show on New York Radio WOR (AM), from October 2004 through December 2005, and then hosted 12 episodes of the TV show Rocco Gets Real on A&E (October 4 through December 27, 2008).
He was featured in a Lincoln MKX commercial and the ABC sitcom The Knights of Prosperity, and was a guest judge on Bravo's Top Chef. He was a contestant on season seven of Dancing with the Stars and was paired with professional ballroom dancer Karina Smirnoff.
On June 15, 2011, he debuted as host of a weekly reality TV cooking competition, titled Rocco's Dinner Party, on Bravo TV. He hosted the syndicated television program Now Eat This! with Rocco Dispirito, which debuted on September 15, 2012. In 2013, he hosted the Food Network reality show Restaurant Divided, where he went to struggling restaurants where the owners had two differing visions and then picked which concept would save the restaurant.
On August 20, 2017, he appeared on celebrity chef Guy Fieri's Guy's Grocery Games - Superstar Tournament Part 1, competing against other celebrity chefs. He has also appeared on other episodes of Guy's Grocery Games as well as Tournament of Champions and Guy's Ranch Kitchen.
He departed Union Pacific in 2004. From 2003 to 2004, he starred in the NBC reality television show The Restaurant, which followed the launch and operation of a new Manhattan restaurant called Rocco's on 22nd. The show was canceled, and DiSpirito was successfully sued by the restaurant's financier Jeffrey Chodorow to have the restaurant shut down, and DiSpirito banned from entering the premises.
He succeeded Arthur Schwartz as host of Food Talk, an hour-long morning talk show on New York Radio WOR (AM), from October 2004 through December 2005, and then hosted 12 episodes of the TV show Rocco Gets Real on A&E (October 4 through December 27, 2008).
He was featured in a Lincoln MKX commercial and the ABC sitcom The Knights of Prosperity, and was a guest judge on Bravo's Top Chef. He was a contestant on season seven of Dancing with the Stars and was paired with professional ballroom dancer Karina Smirnoff.
On June 15, 2011, he debuted as host of a weekly reality TV cooking competition, titled Rocco's Dinner Party, on Bravo TV. He hosted the syndicated television program Now Eat This! with Rocco Dispirito, which debuted on September 15, 2012. In 2013, he hosted the Food Network reality show Restaurant Divided, where he went to struggling restaurants where the owners had two differing visions and then picked which concept would save the restaurant.
On August 20, 2017, he appeared on celebrity chef Guy Fieri's Guy's Grocery Games - Superstar Tournament Part 1, competing against other celebrity chefs. He has also appeared on other episodes of Guy's Grocery Games as well as Tournament of Champions and Guy's Ranch Kitchen.
Filmography
| 2024 | Wildcard Kitchen (TV Series) · as Himself |
| 2023 | Deliciously Twisted Classics (TV Series) · as Self |
| 2023 | Superchef Grudge Match (TV Series) · as Self |
| 2022 | Outchef'd (TV Series) · as Self |
| 2022 | Sherri (2022) (TV Series) · as Self - Guest |
| 2022 | The Good Dish (TV Series) · as Self |
| 2020 | The Drew Barrymore Show (TV Series) · as Self - Guest |
| 2020 | Dishmantled (TV Series) · as Self - Judge |
| 2020 | Tournament of Champions (TV Series) · as Self - Match 2 [1:3] |
| 2019 | Tamron Hall (TV Series) · as Self - Guest |
| 2019 | Supermarket Stakeout (TV Series) · as Himself - Guest Judge |
| 2018 | Diners, Drive-Ins, and Dives: Triple D Nation (TV Series) · as Self |
| 2017 | Guy's Ranch Kitchen (TV Series) · as Self |
| 2017 | Iron Chef Gauntlet (TV Series) · as Self |
| 2016 | Harry (TV Series) · as Self |
| 2015 | Guilty Pleasures (2015) (TV Series) · as Self |
| 2014 | Wake Up Call (TV Series) · as Rocco Dispirito |
| 2014 | Celebrity Name Game (TV Series) · as Self |
| 2014 | The Meredith Vieira Show (TV Series) · as Self |
| 2014 | Kitten Bowl · as Self |
| 2013 | Food Fighters (2014) (TV Series) · as Self - Chef |
| 2013 | Restaurant Divided (TV Series) · as Self - Host |
| 2013 | Guy's Grocery Games (TV Series) · as Self - Judge |
| 2013 | The Queen Latifah Show (2013) (TV Series) · as Self |
| 2013 | Cutthroat Kitchen (TV Series) · as Self - Competitor |
| 2013 | The Real Daytime (TV Series) · as Self |
| 2013 | Hollywood Game Night (TV Series) · as Self - Celebrity Player |
| 2013 | Mistresses (US) (TV Series) · as Rocco Dispirito |
| 2013 | Your Pretty Face is Going to Hell (TV Series) · as Self |
| 2012 | Oprah: Where Are They Now? (TV Series) · as Self |
| 2012 | Home & Family (TV Series) · as Self |
| 2012 | Now Eat This! With Rocco DiSpirito (TV Series) · as Self |
| 2012 | Katie (2012) (TV Series) · as Self |
| 2012 | Stand Up to Cancer · as Self |
| 2012 | Steve Harvey (TV Series) · as Self - Guest |
| 2012 | Totally Biased with W. Kamau Bell (TV Series) · as Self |
| 2012 | Bethenny (TV Series) · as Self |
| 2012 | The Choice (TV Series) · as Self |
| 2011 | The Best Thing I Ever Made (TV Series) · as Self |
| 2011 | Extreme Weight Loss (TV Series) · as Self - Guest |
| 2011 | Big Morning Buzz Live (TV Series) · as Self - Guest Correspondent |
| 2011 | The Marilyn Denis Show (TV Series) · as Self |
| 2010 | The Talk (TV Series) · as Self - Guest |
| 2010 | The Nate Berkus Show (TV Series) · as Self |
| 2010 | Access Hollyood Live (TV Series) · as Self - Guest |
| 2010 | Worst Cooks in America (TV Series) · as Self - Judge |
| 2009 | Talk Stoop (TV Series) · as Self |
| 2009 | Lopez Tonight (TV Series) · as Self - Guest |
| 2009 | The Dr. Oz Show (TV Series) · as Self |
| 2009 | Shark Tank (TV Series) · as Self - Chef |
| 2009 | The Best Thing I Ever Ate (TV Series) · as Self |
| 2009 | Castle (2009) (TV Series) · as Rocco Dispirito |
| 2008 | The Doctors (TV Series) · as Self |
| 2008 | A-List Awards · as Self |
| 2008 | The Wendy Williams Show (TV Series) · as Self - Guest |
| 2007 | The Morning Show with Mike & Juliet (TV Series) · as Self |
| 2006 | Diners, Drive-ins and Dives (TV Series) · as Self |
| 2006 | Rachael Ray (TV Series) · as Self |
| 2006 | After Hours with Daniel Boulud (TV Series) · as Self |
| 2006 | Top Chef (TV Series) · as Himself - Guest Judge |
| 2005 | I Love the Holidays · as Self |
| 2005 | Dancing with the Stars (TV Series) · as Self - Contestant |
| 2004 | Pizza! The Movie · as Self |
| 2004 | The Biggest Loser (TV Series) · as Self |
| 2004 | The Insider (TV Series) · as Self |
| 2004 | The Tony Danza Show (TV Series) · as Self |
| 2004 | The Soup (TV Series) · as Self |
| 2004 | McEnroe (TV Series) · as Self |
| 2004 | Eat This New York · as Himself |
| 2003 | Extreme Makeover: Home Edition (TV Series) · as Self |
| 2003 | Celebrity Poker Showdown (TV Series) · as Self |
| 2003 | The Ellen DeGeneres Show (TV Series) · as Self |
| 2003 | Simply Ming (TV Series) · as Self |
| 2003 | Queer Eye for the Straight Guy (TV Series) · as Self |
| 2003 | Jimmy Kimmel Live! (TV Series) · as Self |
| 2002 | Last Call with Carson Daly (TV Series) · as Self |
| 1999 | The Late Late Show with Craig Kilborn (TV Series) · as Self |
| 1997 | The View (TV Series) · as Self |
| 1996 | Molto Mario (TV Series) · as Self - Guest |
| 1993 | Late Night with Conan O'Brien (TV Series) · as Self - Guest |
| 1993 | Late Show with David Letterman (TV Series) · as Self |
| 1992 | The Tonight Show with Jay Leno (TV Series) · as Self |
| 1988 | Inside Edition (TV Series) · as Self |
| 1981 | Entertainment Tonight (TV Series) · as Self |
| 1979 | CBS Sunday Morning With Jane Pauley (TV Series) · as Self - Guest |
| 1975 | Good Morning America (TV Series) · as Self |
| 1965 | Days of our Lives (TV Series) · as Rocco Dispirito |