Bobby Flay's Daughter: More about Sophie Flay, Her Boyfriend, and Relationship with Her Father

Bobby Flay's daughter, Sophie Flay, called her father in a panic when she got to college, everyone expected her to be as good a chef as him. But the lessons she learned went deeper than whipping elevated comfort food on a time limit – his work ethic.

Sophie Flay spent her childhood in her father's restaurants, but her career path took a while to intersect with that of her father, Bobby Flay. Bobby is a celebrity chef, restaurateur, and host of multiple food shows like "Grill It! with Bobby Flay" and "Beat Bobby Flay," and he is a legend on "Iron Chef."

Though when asked directly, Sophie does not identify as a "daddy's little girl," the twenty-something has a very close relationship with her father.

Sophie Flay Is Bobby Flay's Only Daughter from His Marriage to Kate Connelly

In April 1996, Sophie was born, to Kate Connelly and Bobby, earning the title "best daughter ever" by virtue of being his only child and a "spectacular kid."

April 16 is the chef's favorite day of the year because he can wish Sophie a happy birthday and post a vintage photograph of her, which he loves even though he is sure "it makes her blush."

In 2023, the "Throwdown with Bobby Flay" host uploaded a photo of the Aries at roughly age six smiling the same mischievous way he does, her hair sweetly tucked behind her ear and a golden plastic tiara.

Sopie's parents' meet cute mirrors the iconic meeting between Marlo Thomas and Phil Donahue in a sense; the latter had met when Marlo was a guest on Phil's radio show, and it was a second marriage for him.

Bobby came into Kate's orbit when he was booked on "Robin Leach Talking Food," a Food Network show she co-hosted, in October 1994. The celebrity chef was briefly married to a fellow New York chef, Debra Ponzek, between 1991 and 1993.

A child of divorced parents, the New York native's second marriage crumbled by 1998, but he remained in his daughter's life. Other than being a TV host, journalism grad Kate has worked as a reporter and a model but keeps a low profile these days.

Sophie Flay Follows in Her Famous Father's Footsteps

Sophie is a broadcast journalism graduate of the University of Southern California, where she pledged Delta Gamma and served as editor of USC Annenberg Media. Her voice got a workout as a member of the USC Sirens Acapella, and she hosted a radio show on KXSC.

The USC grad had a "pinch me moment."

During the summer of 2017, she interned at Warner Bros. and spent a month in Pyeongchang, South Korea as an Olympics intern for NBC in February 2018.

After graduation, Sophie was briefly a TVG Network Betfair US production assistant and worked as a Spotify ad voice artist for over two years.

From September 2018, she worked herself up from ABC7 digital news intern to community journalist, a role she has held since March 2019.

The USC grad had a "pinch me moment" when returning to her alma mater to teach visual journalism for a semester in 2022.

Also in 2022, she filmed a few episodes of "Bobby and Sophie on the Coast" for Food Network, having previously appeared together on "The Flay List," and she had guest spots on her dad's shows "Brunch at Bobby's," and "America's Next Great Restaurant."

They collaborated on a podcast, "Always Hungry," in 2021, which stemmed from their conversations at the dinner table. The pair share many interests, such as their tastes in TV shows and podcasts. However, she is happy that their connection is more profound than pop culture:

"We also love horseracing, and being able to share that bond has been great because he got his love for horseracing from his grandfather, and it has now passed down to me."

Sophie Flay Has Amazing Relationships with Her Dad and His New Girlfriend

The tabloid press and Sophie have seen many women enter Bobby's life. He was married to actress Stephanie March of "Law and Order: SVU" and has been linked to January Jones.

He has been dating writer and former Vogue contributor Christina Pérez publically since November 2021. Bobby thinks "it's really great" that his only child gets along with his new girlfriend. Sophie told PEOPLE in August 2022:

"Christina's so sweet, and she's also a fellow journalist, so it's really cool to be able to learn from her too. Her and my dad have such a sweet relationship. It's been really so lovely having her around."

Sophie Flay Is Dating Entrepreneur Jesse Baer, and Her Father Approves

Bobby has a very healthy attitude regarding his daughter's love life, and he thinks her current partner, entrepreneur Jesse Baer, is "a very good kid." The Irish-American does not see himself as the "stereotypical" over-protective dad that would tell Sophie's beau to take care of her. He explains:

"I root for the person that she's dating. I want him to succeed in this relationship, for both their sakes."

As a professional journalist, Sophie is discrete with her personal life. Any information about her relationship with the businessman is limited to what she chooses to share, such as him being "the best Valentine" in 2022 and their spending time on a boat in April of that same year.

At 17, Sophie made her TV debut with her father on Rachel Ray's show in 2013. Even then, the famous chef had a trusting attitude surrounding his daughter's romantic choices. Bobby Flay said that her then-boyfriend was very lucky and a great guy.

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