Lidia's Kitchen
originally aired on PBS
Lidia Giuliana Matticchio Bastianich was born February 21, 1947, in Pola, Istria, just before the city was assigned to Yugoslavia in September 1947. Her family emigrated to the United States when she was 7 months old during the Istrian–Dalmatian exodus. She started working part-time at the age of 14, during which she briefly worked at the Astoria bakery, Walken's Bakery, owned by Christopher Walken. She owns or has owned several Italian restaurants in the U.S. in partnership with her daughter and ex-husband.