Will Guidara

Will Guidara is an American restaurateur and author best known for co-running Eleven Madison Park, the New York restaurant that was named the best in the world, and for turning the philosophy behind that success into the bestselling book Unreasonable Hospitality. Born in 1979, Guidara built his reputation as one of the most influential front of house leaders in fine dining, the partner to chef Daniel Humm, and then reinvented himself as a writer, speaker and advisor whose ideas about service now reach far beyond restaurants.

This profile covers who Will Guidara is, his early life and education, his rise at Eleven Madison Park, the partnership with Daniel Humm and its end, his book and second act, his net worth and his current work.

Early Life and Education

William Guidara was born in 1979 and grew up immersed in the restaurant world. His father, Frank Guidara, was a respected restaurant industry executive, so hospitality was part of Guidara's life from childhood. He has often described watching how restaurants make people feel as a formative influence.

He studied hospitality management at Cornell University, one of the leading programs in the field, training that combined the business of restaurants with the craft of service. That grounding in both the operational and the human sides of hospitality would define his career.

Rise at Eleven Madison Park

Guidara's defining work came at Eleven Madison Park in New York. Together with the Swiss born chef Daniel Humm, he took over the restaurant and set out to turn it into one of the best in the world. Humm led the kitchen while Guidara led the dining room and the business, and the two formed one of the most celebrated partnerships in modern fine dining.

Their approach combined extraordinary food with an obsession over the guest experience. Guidara became known for orchestrating moments of surprise and delight for diners, small, personal gestures that made guests feel genuinely cared for. One famous story, of buying a simple street cart hot dog so a table of food tourists could try a New York classic during a luxury tasting menu, became a parable for his entire philosophy.

The results were remarkable. Eleven Madison Park collected the highest honors in the industry, and in 2017 it was named the number one restaurant in the world on the influential World's 50 Best Restaurants list. Guidara and Humm also expanded their company, Make It Nice, into other venues, including the NoMad restaurants and bars.

The End of the Partnership

In 2019, Guidara and Humm announced that they were ending their business partnership. The split divided their shared company, with Humm continuing to operate Eleven Madison Park. For Guidara, the end of the partnership closed an extraordinary chapter and opened the question of what he would do next, after reaching the very top of the restaurant world.

Rather than immediately opening new restaurants, he turned to teaching and sharing what he had learned.

Unreasonable Hospitality and a Second Act

In 2022, Will Guidara published Unreasonable Hospitality, a book that distilled the lessons of his career into a clear argument: that giving people more than they expect, and making them feel truly cared for, is one of the most powerful and underused advantages in business. The book became a bestseller and resonated far beyond restaurants, with leaders in retail, technology, healthcare and other industries adopting its ideas.

Guidara built on the book through paid speaking, advising companies on culture and service, and the Welcome Conference, an event he co-created that brings together people who care about hospitality. His ideas also reached popular culture, including through his association with acclaimed television about the restaurant world. In this second act, his product is no longer a single restaurant but a philosophy that he teaches to organizations of all kinds.

Will Guidara Net Worth

Will Guidara net worth is not publicly disclosed. His earnings come from a combination of his restaurant career, the success of Unreasonable Hospitality, high profile speaking engagements, and advisory and investment roles in hospitality and related businesses. Because he is not the owner of a single large public company, there is no reliable public figure, and estimates online should be treated with caution.

What is clear is that he has built a durable personal brand around the idea of hospitality, one that generates value across books, speaking and advising rather than from one concentrated source.

Personal Life

Will Guidara keeps much of his personal life private, with his public identity centered on his work and ideas. He is an energetic and frequent public speaker and writer, and he is widely regarded as one of the most articulate voices on service and culture in business today.

Achievements and Influence

Will Guidara's achievements include co-leading Eleven Madison Park to the top of the World's 50 Best Restaurants list, building a celebrated hospitality group, and writing one of the most influential business books on service in recent years. His real influence may be the way he has taken lessons from fine dining and translated them into principles that leaders in any industry can use, making hospitality a serious subject in mainstream business thinking.

Will Guidara in 2026

As of 2026, Will Guidara continues to write, speak and advise on hospitality and culture, and to champion the idea that caring for people is good business. His focus remains on spreading the philosophy of unreasonable hospitality through his book, his conference and his work with organizations far beyond the restaurant industry.

He is profiled alongside other leaders in the Food and Beverage sector on Founder Canon, the founders and operators redefining how the world eats, drinks and is cared for.