Bio : Lisa Dahl

Restaurateur Lisa Dahl leads an esteemed group of restaurants in beautiful Sedona, Arizona, that are ranked among the best dining destinations in the world. For more than 30 years, self-taught Chef Dahl has been a pioneer of the organic farm-to-table movement and a champion of women in the restaurant industry. Her inspirational culinary journey, which originated from the tragic 1994 death of her beloved son Justin, is showcased in the award-winning documentary film Lisa Dahl, Blessed By Grace.

Since opening her first restaurant, Dahl & Di Luca, in 1995, the Dahl Restaurant Group has introduced five additional restaurants to critical acclaim: Mariposa Latin-Inspired Grill, Butterfly Burger, Cucina Rustica, and two locations of Pisa Lisa. With over 300 employees, the group is now one of the largest employers in Northern Arizona.

Over the past three decades, Chef Dahl has cooked for tens of millions of people, with an estimated 500,000 diners each year experiencing her elevated cuisine. Her two cookbooks, Elixir of Life and A Romance With Food, have collectively sold over 30,000 copies.

Her flagship restaurant, Mariposa Latin-Inspired Grill, has garnered global recognition since its opening in 2015, and her first restaurant, the fine-dining Italian Dahl & Di Luca, was recently ranked 4th in the country in Tripadvisor’s “Travelers’ Choice Awards” for “Best of the Best” Date Night restaurants, as well as having earned 23 consecutive Wine Spectator Awards of Distinction.

Lisa has cooked two sold-out dinners at the celebrated James Beard House, appeared as a chef on the Food Network’s “Beat Bobby Flay,” and is a featured restauranteur on distinguished stages alongside icons of the food industry, including Chip Wade (Union Square Hospitality) at the “Wall Street Journal Global Food Forum” (2023). Lisa has been covered by USA Today, The New York Times, Wall Street Journal, Forbes, Wine Spectator, Tasting Table, Goop, TimeOut, Los Angeles Times, Thrillist, Huffington Post, among others, and was awarded by The Arizona Restaurant Association two highly-coveted awards including “Food Pioneer” and “Top Chef Arizona.”

Her philanthropic Lisa Dahl Foundation, launched in 2024, is building its endowment and taking donations to support its cornerstone project, Soup Hope, a jarred soup designed to deliver real nourishment to people in need or struggling with food insecurity.

Through her cooking, restaurants, and media appearances, Chef Dahl, who lives by the motto, “When you cook with love, you feed the soul,” brings hope and joy to those who have suffered their own hardships, as well as shows the culinary industry that dreams do come true through grit, innovation, and top-shelf hospitality.