Buddy Valastro is a doting and guardian father.
The celebrity chef, who will have two new series debuting on A&E in the month of November, recently talked with PEOPLE about getting to know Anthony, the boyfriend of his daughter Sofia, who is 20 years old. (Valastro and his wife Lisa also split custody of their three children, Buddy Jr., age 19, Marco, age 16, and Carlo, age 12).
“To tell you the truth, he’s a nice child. They have been together for close to three years now as a couple. Therefore, we had some fun with him, and we still do to this day,” he explains.
He continues by saying, “My children and I make fun of each other all the time.” We give each other a good kicking. Pranking one another is merely part of our dynamic as a group; we can’t help ourselves. To be able to play about with Anthony and have Uncle Danny and Uncle Mauro give him a few frights here and there is always a lot of fun.
Putting all joking aside, the man who was born and raised in New Jersey is just beaming with pleasure over his daughter.
“She has truly improved to the point where she is a pretty wonderful chef. She wasn’t much of a chef before, but all of my sons have always had a passion for the kitchen, but now she’s really into it, and she prepares dinner every night for her partner,” adds Valastro.
A new program on A&E called Buddy Valastro’s Cake Dynasty puts the Valastro family’s baking expertise on full display for viewers.
“Cake Dynasty is where my life is today; it’s been 14,15 years since I started it. At the time, my children were still quite little. “Now that they’re all older, they’re beginning to take an active role in the family business,” he shares with PEOPLE in reference to the new series.
He continues by saying, “So that’s the succession part of the business…we don’t just make cakes, we have 14 bakeries and seven or eight restaurants and food concepts, 75 vending machines, and…”Therefore, it is less about producing a single enormous cake and more about figuring out how to produce 18 cakes in a minute and other such things.
Because of this increase, there is now more pressure, which may result in some appropriate swearing.
“This is unquestionably a more sophisticated adaptation. We try to keep things as genuine and unfiltered as possible. Therefore, every once in a while you’ll hear a few cuss words here and there,” he explains with a chuckle.
In June of 2022, Valastro gave an interview to PEOPLE in which he discussed how his children, notably Sofia, who is a student at the University of Delaware, had shown an interest in one day working full-time in the family company.
And I want it to be the case. He stated, “I really couldn’t be more excited to watch the next generation take over.” “However, I never want to coerce them in any way. I want them to do it because it’s something they like doing.
According to Valastro, his children will soon reach an age at which they are able to “actually have these conversations.” Recently, Valastro asked Sofia what she plans to do once she graduates from college, and Sofia said, “I want to work with you.” I want to be a part of the family enterprises,” he recalls thinking to himself.
Naturally, Sofia made the decision to major in business and hotel management so that she could return to the Valastro business empire as soon as she completed her education.
Every one of his children is uniquely equipped with a set of skills that they may provide to the team. “Buddy is the one who has the greatest grit and will never give up. And there’s no denying that Marco has the talent of gab. He remarked that of one of his kids, “he’s the mayor.”
Valastro said that Sofia is undoubtedly the most creative when it comes to the decorating section, and that she takes the prize.
The aspiring baker began lending a hand with cookie decorating when she was on winter vacation from college over the Valentine’s Day holiday. “She was responsible for baking ten thousand cookies. According to Valastro, “So it’s like when you are there with the team and you make 10,000, that’s how you get good.”
