Chris Santos, chef/partner of Stanton Social and a frequent judge on The Food Network’s Chopped cooking show, has one of the more colorful collections of tats in the food world. What you can see pictured here on his left arm is a full sleeve collage of fire and stars, which was inspired by the book Hot Bodies, Cool Styles. “Fire, because at the root of my craft as a chef, I know how to manipulate and temper flames and control the dance of fire precisely as need,” he explains. “Stars, as a reminder to constantly reach higher and higher in life.”
Though you can’t see it here, his right arm contains an orchid collage that surrounds Portuguese script that translates to “the flowers will bloom if you want them to.” That same collage also features song lyrics from a favorite artist, Dax Riggs. In essence, the tattoos on his right arm “are a metaphor that life is what you make it.”
Santos also sports a “lucky 13” collage featuring a curvy, voluptuous beauty drinking a glass of red wine, “alluding to my love of gambling and beautiful women full of life.” The tattoo was inspired by the art on the cookbook Au Pied de Cochon.
He also has an “I heart Bacon” tattoo on bicep.” It’s an Old Sailor-style heart tattoo, but instead of a woman's name it reads "bacon," and the interior of the heart is marbled like bacon,” says Santos. “It’s a big hit at parties,” he laughs.