Ming Tsai addresses CIA graduates

Chef Ming Tsai, award-winning chef, restaurateur and television host and owner of Blue Ginger restaurant in Wellesley, Mass., delivered the commencement address at The Culinary Institute of America (CIA), Hyde Park, N.Y., on Nov. 6. The James Beard Foundation Best Chef in the Northeast talked to the 62 associate degree recipients about the value of cooking, hospitality and community service over celebrity status.

Chef Ming Tsai addresses CIA graduates

"Emeril [Lagasse], Mario [Batali] and Bobby [Flay] tell me I can have 10 restaurants," he told CIA students. "At the end of the day it is not about how much stuff you can collect. It's about enjoying the ride. We make people happy through food."

Tsai has hosted two television shows, authored three cookbooks and developed a line of eco-friendly bamboo kitchen products. He also is active with groups such as The Food Allergy & Anaphylaxis Network, Chefs for Humanity, the Harvard School of Public Health's Nutrition Roundtable, Big Brothers Big Sisters, The Cam Neely Foundation and The Denis Leary Firefighters Foundation.