Why Rachael Ray Ditched The US For Italy

Celebrity chef Rachael Ray is a born-and-raised New Yorker — and she certainly has the real estate portfolio to prove it. Between Ray's cozy East Village apartment, her large Lake Luzerne home that had to be rebuilt following a devastating fire, and the Southampton estate she formerly owned, the Glens Falls native certainly hasn't forgotten her roots. That being said, everyone needs a change of scenery now and again. Hence, Ray's decision to purchase and renovate a home in the Tuscany region of Italy. The process was even chronicled in the reality show "Rachael Ray's Italian Dream Home" (though filming the show wasn't always easy). But just what is it about The Boot that has the Food Network icon content to more or less leave American life behind?

Well, according to Ray, she simply prefers the peace and quiet of Italy to life in the Big Apple, as does her dog. "I prefer to be in Italy because it's quiet, and the dog hates New York," Ray told People in October 2025, elaborating, "She just can't handle the sound and the lack of land, grass and woods of New York. She just can't handle it, so I stay in Italy as much as possible." One person who doesn't completely see eye-to-eye with Ray on that front is actually her husband, John M. Cusimano. According to Ray, however, it's really not too big of an issue between them. "My husband loves New York, prefers New York. And he has a rock 'n' roll band, and so he spends a lot of time here. I spend as much time as I can there. We work in both places," she said, adding, "I tell John all the time, however much time he wants to spend here, do it."

Rachael Ray's relocation to Tuscany certainly makes sense, given that's exactly where she and husband John M. Cusimano tied the knot back in 2005. Not only that, but Ray's grandfather — who she says made a profound impact on her life, as well as imparted a deep affinity for Italian food — was actually a Sicilian immigrant.

During a 2019 interview with NPR, Ray recounted a story from her book "Rachael Ray 50," in which her grandfather comforted her after she was mocked at school for the clothes she wore and the sardine sandwich she packed for lunch. "So I came home that day being the stinky girl in the funny clothes with the funny shoes. ... And I was crying," she said. But according to Ray, the advice her grandfather gave her changed everything about her outlook on life. "There's plenty in life that you have no control over that you will cry about. Certainly your vanity should never be one of them, you know?" he said.

With all that in mind, it should come as no surprise that Ray's move overseas was a long time coming. As she remarked in her 2025 interview with People. "[Living in Italy is] my life's dream. And I'm in my 50s. I worked my whole life to live there. And we have a huge garden, orto, and we make our own wine. We press our own olive oil. We have a freshwater pool so my dog can drink water and swim at the same time. I just love the peace of it and the smell of the air."