The Story of Louis Diat: The French Chef Who Invented Vichyssoise in New York is the latest episode of Fabulously Delicious — and it tells the remarkable and largely untold story of one of the most influential French chefs ever to work on American soil. Louis Diat was born in 1885 in Montmarault in the Allier department of central France, spent forty-one years as head chef of the Ritz-Carlton Hotel in Manhattan, cooked for kings, presidents and the Prince of Wales, and in 1917 created crème vichyssoise glacée — one of the most celebrated cold soups in the history of fine dining — inspired by a childhood memory of his mother's kitchen in rural France. The episode follows Diat's extraordinary journey from a small town in Bourbonnais country, where he was waking up before school at eight years old to make soup, through his classical training at the Ritz Paris under César Ritz himself and the Ritz London, to his arrival in New York in October 1910 at just twenty-five years old. Within weeks he was head chef of the newly opened Ritz-Carlton, with Auguste Escoffier overseeing the inauguration of the restaurant. The story of how a childhood memory — his mother pouring cold milk into leftover potato and leek soup on warm summer mornings — became one of the most famous dishes in the history of French gastronomy is one of the most quietly beautiful origin stories in all of French food. The second half of the episode covers Diat's forty-one years at the Ritz-Carlton, his cooking for some of the most powerful figures of the twentieth century, the Chevalier du Mérite Agricole he received in 1938 for bringing French culinary culture to America, his time as in-house chef at Gourmet magazine from 1947, and the farewell luncheon he prepared for his kitchen staff on the day the Ritz-Carlton closed for demolition in 1951. It also covers the remarkable Diat family legacy — including his brother Lucien, who became executive chef at the Plaza Athénée in Paris and taught Jacques Pépin. Louis Diat is one of the great overlooked figures in French culinary history. The New York Times called him an artist of the menu and said he had raised the leek and potato to greatness. This episode is the full story of the man behind that tribute — and behind one of the most famous soups in the world Send us Fan Mail Support the show My book Paris: A Fabulous Food Guide to the World’s Most Delicious City is your ultimate companion. This is a new 2026 update for the book and you’ll find hand-picked recommendations for the best boulangeries, patisseries, wine bars, cafés, and restaurants that truly capture the flavor of Paris. You can order it online at andrewpriorfabulously.com For those who want to take things further, why not come cook with me here in Montmorillon, in the heart of France’s Vienne region? Combine hands-on French cooking classes with exploring charming markets, tasting regional specialties, and soaking up the slow, beautiful pace of French countryside life. Every contribution makes a huge difference.