Emeril Lagasse talks about how his tour of Fall River will play into his new restaurant

FALL RIVER — His culinary talents have taken him all round the world, but a piece of superstar chef Emeril Lagasse's heart will forever remain in his hometown.

So when a new restaurant venture inspired a recent visit by the Fall River native and his Emeril Group team to his old stomping grounds, Lagasse was happy to take the lead.

"My wife said that I've never had a bigger smile on my face. ... I was truly home," Lagasse said following his multi-day trip to the SouthCoast in late April.

Looks like you can take the boy out of Fall River, but you can't take Fall River out of the boy — not even one who's amassed an impressive career over the past three decades as cooking icon, author, TV show host and restaurateur with 10 restaurants and counting under his apron strings.

Lagasse's never forgotten where he came from.

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A tribute to the Portuguese culture

His humble beginnings growing up Portuguese in a little house on Baker Street, working the festa circuit in a Portuguese marching band, and cultivating his cooking chops in a small kitchens across the city all serve as inspiration for the upcoming 34 Restaurant & Bar, Lagasse's first Portuguese restaurant, set to debut in New Orleans this fall.

"I grew up eating that sort of food and experiencing that kind of culture, so a lot of my influences in my cooking is not only my mom but where I grew up," he said.

A collaboration with his son E.J. Lagasse, who has taken over as chef patron of the flagship Emeril's, 34 is described as his family's love letter to Portugal. "It's a tribute to my mom and to the Portuguese culture and people," he said.

According to Lagasse, he began cooking with his mother, Hilda Medeiros, at an early age and credits her for fostering his interest in the culinary arts. Now he's looking to share those Portuguese culinary traditions that were passed down to him with a wider audience — and with a "modern twist."

Research and development for his new restaurant began roughly a year ago, and included trips to two Portuguese cities, Lisbon and Porto. But Lagasse knew their culinary quest wouldn't be complete without a return to his roots.

"I really wanted them to experience Fall River, New Bedford, Westport," Lagasse said of his Emeril Group team, which manages his restaurants in New Orleans, Las Vegas, Miramar Beach, Florida, and at sea aboard Carnival Cruise Lines. "To breathe the air and see the people, be around the people, where I grew up, where I went to school, where I lived. ... It was really cool to experience that with the team."

Over the years, the Johnson & Wales University graduate has remained very involved with his alma mater, returning to Providence for various events, which sometimes leaves him enough time to swing through Fall River "just to get a smell of the air."

"And there's nothing like going over the Braga Bridge, you know?" he said.

It's been several years since he last made a quick stop in Spindle City, so Lagasse said it was a nice treat to be able to make this trip a more extended visit.

Emeril's whirlwind SouthCoast tour

Seeking a wide variety of authentic Portuguese cuisine, Lagasse's whirlwind SouthCoast tour took him to popular restaurants, bakeries and businesses across Greater Fall River and Providence.

The multi-day visit became a virtual game of "Where's Emeril?" for those following his culinary adventures on social media. His jam-packed itinerary, which kicked off at O Dinis in East Providence, featured stops at Portas da Cidade in Westport, Fall River's Sagres Restaurant, T.A. Restaurant, Caldeiras Restaurant, Europa Pastries and Coffee Shop, Portugalia Marketplace, Mello's Chouriço and Linguiça and Sarmento's Imports, as well as Saraiva Enterprises in New Bedford.

Their mission: to sample as much traditional Portuguese cuisine as they could, from the sweet — pastel de nata, massa and malassadas — to the savory — grilled octopus, bacalhau (baked cod), pork and littlenecks, and more. And according to Lagasse, his crew probably tasted 150 Portuguese wines along the way.

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The verdict?

"They absolutely loved it," said Lagasse.

The chef was particularly impressed by his first visit to Portugalia Marketplace, where he met with owner Michael Benevides, as well as Natalia Paiva Neves, owner of O Dinis, to peruse their wine area and unique, glassed-in bacalhau (salted cod) room.

"What an amazing place," Lagasse said, noting that he plans to do a lot of business with the Fall River market for various products.

Emeril's new 34 restaurant 'the real deal'

Lagasse's restaurant portfolio is diverse, with concepts ranging from Cajun to steakhouse. 34 will be centered around Portuguese tapas.

"It's going to be the real deal," Lagasse said. "I don't know any restaurant like it in the South."

The restaurant name "34" represents the partnership between him and his son, Emeril Lagasse the third and fourth.

The predominantly Portuguese menu — with a hint of Spanish influence — will feature traditional dishes such as clams, shrimp Mozambique, bacalhau, codfish cakes, pork and littlenecks, "but with a modern twist," Lagasse said.

Some personal favorites that likely pop up on the menu at 34 include Lagasse's version of a Bacalhau à Gomes de Sá, and his mom's favas recipe.

When in Fall River ... gotta grab some chow mein

While Portuguese food is what brought his team to Fall River, his culinary tour wouldn't be complete without a taste of nostalgia.

So Lagasse made sure his itinerary included detours to some of his childhood favorite eateries. One such must-stop for the chef, who has long expressed his love for one particular Fall River specialty that draws foodies far and near, was to the South End staple Mee Sum.

"I have memories as a child going there at least once a week to have a chow mein sandwich," Lagasse, who pointed out that their take on this beloved southeastern Mass./Rhode Island dish is unmatched.

"The chow mein in Fall River is unlike any place else. ... There's something about the noodles, and something about what Mee Sum's does with the gravy." Lagasse said.

And while, sadly, King Philip Lunch is long gone, Lagasse was able to introduce his team to another famous Fall River Coney Island hot dog institution: Nick's Hot Dogs.

"They were blown away with that," he said.

Spindle City memories

Born in 1959 in Fall River, Emeril John Lagasse III — whose father, Emeril John Lagasse Jr., was from Quebec, and his mother, Hilda Medeiros, was from Portugal — grew up "very Portuguese."

During his recent visit, Lagasse's trip down memory lane included a drive by his former family home on Baker Street, located the next street over from St. John's Athletic Club, where the aspiring chef learned the ropes in the kitchen.

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Lagasse recalls having a busy childhood.

He was a percussionist in a Portuguese band, the St. Anthony's Band, starting at age 8, and spent a lot of time at Portuguese feasts throughout the region.

"Those Portuguese feasts were always something very unique," he said. "I can remember being very young and trying to understand the difference between Portuguese soup made at this church in Providence versus Portuguese soup made at this church in New Bedford."

When he wasn't playing music and enjoying festa eats, he had part-time jobs at local restaurants and played sports.

"I have memories of Maplewood Park, Columbus Park ... got a lot of grinders at Marzilli's, that's for sure," said Lagasse.

"It was really neat being back," he said.

How did growing up in Fall River inspire Emeril as a chef?

According to Lagasse, his mother Hilda was his first influence, helping to ignite his passion for food.

"I started very young in a Portuguese bakery — Moonlight Baking Corporation (now Barcelos Bakery) on Bedford Street, washing pots and pans there when I was 11," he recalled.

He eventually worked his way up to doing deliveries on the weekends, before bakers at the shop took a liking to Lagasse and started teaching him how to bake.

His first foray into the culinary world began with breads and pastries. Then he shifted to savory, working at local restaurants like St. John's Athletic Club, where he came to know another lifelong mentor.

Lagasse credits the late Ines DeCosta, longtime chef at St. John's Athletic Club on Rodman Street in Fall River, with playing a significant role in his life both inside and outside the kitchen, regarding her as a second mom.

"Ines and I were very close," he recalled. "She had been on 'Emeril Live' several times. I grew up in that kitchen helping her, whether it was with Portuguese food or Friday night with fried clams and scallops."

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He honed his talent for cooking in Diman Regional Vocational Technical High School's culinary arts program, and upon graduation turned down a full scholarship to the New England Conservatory of Music to pursue his dream of becoming a chef at Johnson & Wales University.

He worked his way up through kitchens at various Fall River area establishments, such as the Quequechan Club and the Venus De Milo in Swansea, held various summer jobs in Rhode Island, before eventually broadening his culinary horizons.

Lagasse's travels have taken him to Paris and Lyon, France, where he honed his skills and learned the art of classic French cuisine, as well as fine restaurants in New York, Boston and Philadelphia before being drawn to New Orleans to helm the kitchen at the legendary restaurant Commander’s Palace.

Lagasse set out on his own in 1990 opening his flagship, Emeril’s Restaurant, in New Orleans’ Warehouse District, and ultimately building his restaurant empire.

"It just kept evolving and evolving, and it's still evolving today," he said.

Lagasse was recently named Honorary President of Bocuse d’Or Americas for the international competition taking place in New Orleans this June, adding to his long list of accolades.

While his collection of recipes is much more expansive and refined since his early Spindle City days, you'll still find Portuguese comfort foods like caldo verde and piri piri chicken on the Lagasse family table at home pretty regularly.

Any advice you would give aspiring chefs/restaurateurs?

"My advice is that everybody needs at least one mentor," Lagasse said. "It's not easy. You have to work hard at it. All these years later, I'm still working very hard at it and trying to get better every day. That's the philosophy in my organization. We're just trying to make people happy."

This article originally appeared on The Herald News: Emeril Lagasse's visit to Fall River inspires his Portuguese restaurant