I guess I feel that I was following my instincts, and at the same time being guided by the best. I became totally intrigued with Louisiana - the people, the food. It is a part of my life. Everything that has happened for me since moving here has just been icing on the cake.

The world has changed, and it’s almost been 11 years. I have 975 employees. I have six restaurants. We haven’t opened any new ones in almost three years.

I wouldn’t ask any of my employees to do anything I wouldn’t do. And I work as hard, if not harder than the rest of the staff, to set an example. I also believe in giving my employees a lot of room to be creative and to express themselves.

The cool thing is that now that people have made this evolution where cooking is cool, people are doing it on weekends, they’re doing their own challenges. It’s back to cooking. And it’s real cooking.

Wrap fish fillets, sliced veggies, and other quick-cooking items inside foil packets with bundles of fresh herbs and throw them directly on the grill; the steam will release the herb’s perfume and flavor anything contained inside the pouch.

You know, for 300 years it’s been kind of the same. There are restaurants in New Orleans that the menu hasn’t changed in 125 years, so how is one going to change or evolve the food?

We’ll be going to the fish market and a farmer’s market this afternoon to get what we need to make and eat dinner as a family. I’m trying to expose my kids to going to a farmers market or the fish market and learning what that’s all about.

You have to be cautious of eating continuously the same thing. Beef comes to mind right away, and there’s nothing wrong with beef, but you’ve got to do whatever you’re doing in moderation. So try to break it up a little bit. Eat some fish or some shellfish at least a couple of times a week.

When it ceases to be fun, I’ll stop and just stay in my restaurants.

My Food Network shows, ‘Emeril Live’ and ‘Essence of Emeril,’ are not in production right now, but I wouldn’t say that I’m necessarily leaving Food Network. I have a lot of television still in me. I enjoy teaching people, so it’s just a matter of time before I do something new.