Emeril Lagasse’s 4 Children: All About Jessica, Jillian, E.J. and Meril

Mar. 15, 2025

Emeril Lagasse and daughter Meril Lagasse. ; Emeril Lagasse’s daughter Jillian Lagasse and son E.J. Lagasse.Photo:Emeril Lagasse/Instagram ; Emeril Lagasse/Facebook

Emeril Lagasse/Instagram ; Emeril Lagasse/Facebook

Emeril Lagasse’s four children — Jessica, Jillian, E.J and Meril — have all followed in his culinary footsteps in one way or another.

Jessica and Jillian have written two cookbooks together, and E.J. now heads his father’s flagship restaurant, Emeril’s. Although Meril hasn’t followed in her dad’s culinary footsteps, Emeril named another one of his New Orleans restaurants, Meril, after her.

Though the children are spread across the country, from New Orleans to Mississippi and Florida, Emeril speaks highly of their family dynamics. “I’m very close to all of my children,”he told TIMEin 2023. “We have a really great relationship, although we may be miles apart.”

Here’s everything to know about Emeril Lagasee’s children: Jessica, Jillian, E.J and Meril.

Jessica Lagasse, 45

Left to right: Jillian Lagasse, Alden Lovelace, Emeril Lagasse and Jessica Lagasse.Emeril Lagasse/Instagram

Emeril Lagasse/Instagram

Emeril and Elizabeth welcomed their daughter Jessica Lagasse in August 1979.

They raised Jessica and her sister Jillian in Somerset, Mass., close to Emeril’s hometown of Fall River.

Speaking to TIME in 2023, he revealed when he first became a father at 19, it was “very difficult being a parent” while also building his career — working “80 hours a week, six days a week, two jobs, trying to make ends meet.”

Though Emeril was just starting out in the culinary industry, he still tried to spend time with his daughters.

“With my first two girls, the connection was basically in the kitchen, because that’s where they had to come see me where I was working,” he said. “The prize at the end of the day would be to do a family dinner and have family time before they went to bed.”

After a few years, the family moved to New Orleans, where Emeril continued to work long hours. Eventually, he and Elizabeth split, and she moved back to the Northeast with Jessica and Jillian, leaving Emeril in a difficult “long distance relationship” with his kids.

Emeril Lagasse attends 2017 Boudin Bourbon and Beer at Champions Square on November 3, 2017 in New Orleans, Louisiana.Erika Goldring/Getty

Erika Goldring/Getty

Still, as his success grew, he kept them at the top of his priorities, arranging for them to visit him or vice versa, and they continued making food together.

When she was diagnosed with gluten sensitivity in 2001, Jessica began testing different recipes that she could eat on her new gluten-free diet. After a decade of experimenting, she decided to share the recipes she created through various projects, perEdible Orlando.

Collaborating with her sister Jillian, they published two cookbooks:The Gluten-Free Table: The Lagasse Girls Share Their Favorite Mealsin 2012 andThe Lagasse Girls' Big Flavor, Bold Taste and No Glutenin 2014.

Though Jessica keeps her personal life private, she has been married to her husband, Steven Swanson, for over two decades, and the couple have two sons together, Jude and John Peter, per The Lagasse Girls website.

Two years later, in April 2017, Emeril uploaded a photo of himself, Jessica and her two sonsdying Easter eggsalongside E.J. and Meril.

Jillian Lagasse, 43

Emeril Lagasse with his daughter Jillian Lagasse.Emeril Lagasse/Facebook

Emeril Lagasse/Facebook

Emeril and Elizabeth welcomed their daughter Jillian Lagasse on Oct. 10, 1981.

For a time, Jillian followed her father’s culinary career path as well. When she first showed an interest in cooking at a young age, Emeril gave her her first pair of chef’s whites and let her help in the pastry and dessert department at one of his restaurants, per The Lagasse Girls website.

Jillian then assisted her father in creating his cookbooks, attending cooking events and book tours. These experiences eventually evolved into working with her sister on their two shared cookbooks.

Similar to her sister’s gluten intolerance, Jillian was diagnosed with Celiac disease in 2004, and she decided to dedicate her time to sharing tips about healthy eating and cooking.

“My ultimate dream is to help educate our youth as much as I can about cooking skills and food education,” she toldThe Herald Newsin 2015. “I feel that they are crucial life skills that everyone should have.”

At the same time Jillian was delving into cookbook creation with her sister, she also charted a different career path in the beauty industry.

Emeril Lagasse and his daughter Jillian Lagasse as a child in a family photo.Emeril Lagasse/Facebook

In 2004, she moved to London to attend makeup school and began her career in Los Angeles and New York City. Jillian worked in luxury spas and hotels as a massage therapist and aesthetician for over 18 years.

Simultaneously, she worked alongside her father as a staff makeup artist for his showsThe Originalson the Cooking Channel andEmeril’s Tableon the Hallmark Channel, per The Lagasse Girls website.

In the spring of 2024, Jillian left the luxury hotel industry to work as an aesthetician atBlush Beauty Loungein Sarasota, Fla., where she focuses on lymphatic drainage massage and facials.

While she keeps her private life off social media, Jillian is married toher husband, Andrew Yeum, and they share one child together — their daughter, Eleanor “Ellie” Yeum.

Emeril is a proud grandfather: In September 2019, he posted a photoon Facebookof him and his wife Alden with Ellie. “What a great day spending time with my Ellie boo,” he captioned the post.

A month later,Emeril shared a throwback snapin honor of Jillian’s birthday — posting a picture of her sitting on his shoulders as a child with a simple “happy birthday” caption.

Emeril John “E.J.” Lagasse IV, 21

Emeril Lagasse, E.J. Lagasse and Alden Lovelace.Emeril Lagasse/Instagram

Emeril and Alden welcomed their son Emeril John “E.J.” Lagasse IV on March 30, 2003.

E.J. has most closely followed his father’s career footsteps, working in professional kitchens since he was a child, perThe Washington Post. When he was around 10, he told his parents he wanted to be a chef after eating pomegranate-glazed duck for dinner at the famed Cafe Boulud in Manhattan.

“I remember finishing the duck, getting in the car and looking at my dad being like, ‘Yeah, I want to be a chef,’ ” E.J. recalled to the outlet in 2023. “And he was just like, ‘Oh God, oh no.’ My mom had the same reaction.”

He elaborated toCBS Newsthat his love for cooking didn’t compare to anything else in his life. “Every young kid thinks, ‘I’m going to play a sport, I’ll be in the Olympics’ or something like that. It wasn’t what it was for me,” he said in 2023.

At 12, he began “staging” (a sort of unpaid kitchen internship) in different restaurants to learn techniques and be exposed to a variety of cuisines. By 16 — before he evengraduated high school— E.J. was working alongside his dad at Emeril’s Coastal Italian restaurant in Florida and helping him at events like the Cayman Cookout in the Cayman Islands.

At the 2020 Cayman Cookout event, E.J. told PEOPLE about their father-son dynamic. “I’ve worked with him in kitchens [since] I could walk,” he said. “So that’s always kind of been a thing. But it’s great.We have a great personal relationshipinside and outside the kitchen. But he is not afraid to tell me how it is, for sure.”

Emeril Lagasse with son E.J. Lagasse.Emeril Lagasse/Instagram

“18 years old today. This young man chose his craft and has created a path of his own. Along the way he has made us incredibly proud and I and I couldn’t be happier to work beside him. Happy 18th Birthday @ejlagasse. Love you, son,” he wrote in the caption.

After graduating from culinary school at Johnson & Wales University in Providence, R.I. —his dad’s alma mater— in May 2022, E.J. went on to work at two Michelin-starred restaurants in London and Stockholm, according toThe Washington Post. Just as he was wrapping up his London job, Emeril asked E.J. to come back home and work at his flagship restaurant, Emeril’s, in New Orleans.

Within a year of working at Emeril’s, E.J got a promotion and is now at the helm as the chef patron — handling day-to-day culinary operations, per theEmeril’s website. The “new” Emeril’s, with E.J. at the reins, officially launched in October 2023, per the restaurant’sInstagram.

Outside of the kitchen, E.J and Emeril have a close relationship, with the younger Lagasse calling his dad his “best friend” in a poston Instagram. There’s no doubt that Emeril feels the same way about their unique bond.

Meril Lagasse, 20

Emeril Lagasse and daughter Meril Lagasse.Emeril Lagasse/Instagram

Emeril and Alden welcomed their daughter Meril Lovelace Lagasse on Dec. 10, 2004.

Though Meril hasn’t followed her father into professional cooking, she does have some culinary connections. In 2016, Emeril opened his thirteenth restaurant, Meril, in New Orleans — named after his daughter.

On opening night, he posted a photo of them wearing chef’s whites, and she donned a branded hat from the restaurant. “With my youngest daughter, Meril on opening day of Meril. So proud,” Emeril captioned the poston Facebook.

Even though Meril is not a chef like her father,Emeril shared a snapof her in one of his restaurants that same year — scoping some food in the kitchen — for her birthday.

More recently, in the fall of 2023, Meril started college at the University of Mississippi — joining her mom Alden’s sorority, Delta Delta Delta, a.k.a. Tri Delta, according to herInstagramand theMagnolia Tribune.

Emeril Lagasse and his daughter thank guests for attending Boudin, Bourbon & Beer at Champions Square on November 7, 2014 in New Orleans, Louisiana.Erika Goldring/Getty

Alden, a Mississippi native, graduated in 1978 with a journalism degree, and her father — Meril’s grandfather — also graduated from Ole Miss in 1958, where he played on the football team (and was late drafted to the Philadelphia Eagles), per theMagnolia Tribune.

In August of that year, when Meril officially joined the sorority, Emeril congratulated heron Instagram.

“What a weekend @olemiss with @merillagasse. Congratulations Mookie, it’s going to be a great year!” he wrote alongside a photo of the two, with Meril sporting Tri Delta gear.

Emeril often shares pictures of himself and Meril on social media, usually using his nicknames for her “Mookie” and “Mook.”

In December 2023, Emeril posted a meaningful message to Meril on her birthday.

“What a year it has been. Watching you grow into the intelligent, beautiful young lady that you are has been incredible. I’m excited to see what 19 has in store for you. Love you Mook!” he captioned anInstagram photoof the two at a restaurant.

source: people.com