Ina Garten Talks about First Date With Husband That Led to 53 Years of Marriage

• Ina Garten reveals what happened on her first date with her husband, leading to 53 years of love.

• They live together in the family house to spend a "very quiet life."

Food Network star Ina Garten and her husband of five decades' first date did not go as planned. The couple's love has also been tested a few times.

Cookbook author Ina Garten openly talked about her relationship with her spouse, Jeffery Garten, during an appearance on "The Drew Barrymore Show."

The New York native revealed that the couple's first date was such a "disaster," and she wondered, to this day, why Jeffery still wanted to see her again after their encounter.

Ina was sixteen in high school when she first met the future economist who was a student at Dartmouth College. The pair had a mutual pal at the time, and Jeffery first spotted his future wife on campus.

"We had a mutual friend, and he'd seen me walking around the campus of Dartmouth, and he asked the friend if he could call me. So, he called, and I just knew he was a friend of the friend, and I thought, 'Well, he's a Dartmouth guy, so he probably wants to, like, go to a bar,'" she explained.

Ina suggested they go to a bar called Hilltop as she used to go there. However, things became tricky when they were supposed to access the establishment.

As Ina and Jeffery approached the door, bouncers welcomed them, and she was left confused about what they were talking about. To her surprise, she was supposed to show them her ID:

"I had no idea I needed a fake ID to get into a bar when I was sixteen."

Regardless of that hurdle, the couple's night turned out well, as they sealed the evening with their first kiss after Jeffery made the first move. Ina said they locked lips in front of her home while she believed he would never want to see her again following their rocky first date.

Years later, the "Barefoot Contessa" star asked why the businessman wanted to go out with her again after their disastrous date, and he said to her:

"I thought you needed taking care of."

How Did They Manage to Save Their Marriage?

Jeffery and Ina started dating in 1963 after he sent her a note with a photo of himself. She got so excited that she went home to show it to mom and told her that her future husband was good-looking.

Ina told People in 2018: "He's just the best friend anybody could ever have," she said of her now spouse. She gushed about Jeffery, saying he was intelligent and full of creative ideas. He previously worked for the government and the bank, he is an academic and a published author of several books, and his wife admires him for that.

Being a writer has played a significant role in the couple's life, especially shortly after they wed on December 22, 1968. Jeffery got deployed in the Army to Thailand for a year following their wedding.

With the distance between them, he penned letters to her daily and could only dial her once a year. Ina kept all the notes, including the one where Jeffery had promised her that they would visit Paris someday, and they eventually did. Now, the lovebirds visit the city of love yearly for their anniversaries.

The couple has been separated numerous times because of Jeffery's work obligations. In the 1980s, his company at the time, Lehman Brothers, transferred him to Japan.

That transition did not stop Jeffery from consistently communicating with his spouse through letters. With the help of technology, he faxed them so she could receive them the following day.

Things settled when the former government official only began traveling less. He became consistent in contacting Ina by texting several times daily.

Jeffery said if he could be with her every day and every week, it "would be my ideal." The pair celebrated their 50th wedding anniversary in December 2018.

Ina Reveals Her House Where She Lives a 'Very Quiet Life'

Ina and Jeffery reside in East Hampton, New York, and the property comprises the main house, a barn, and a garden. The TV star acquired the abode in the mid-1990s.

She and her spouse settled in Suffolk County, bought the 37,026 square-foot lot, and expanded it in 2006 when they purchased an open field next door.

Ina disclosed in April 2015 that because she and Jeffery desperately wanted to acquire the plot, they made it known to the neighbor that they would like to be the first ones to purchase it once he decided to sell it. The said owner had turned down the couple's interest in the plot several times until he eventually caved.

Once the duo got the land, they expanded the property by building a 2,000-square-foot barn. It consists of a kitchen, two large rooms, and a living space.

The barn is where the TV host films all her cooking shows, and her favorite room is the kitchen. Ina loves her main house kitchen so much that she replicated it in the barn.