Inside Rachael Ray and husband John Cusimano’s two very different preferred living situations

Rachael Ray knows what she likes and doesn’t like. The 57-year-old chef recently revealed how her lifestyle preferences differ from her husband, John Cusimano.

In a conversation with People, Rachael explained: “I live [in Italy] as long and as much as I can,” while her husband “prefers New York.” 

The couple owns multiple properties – an apartment in NYC., a home in the upstate New York town of Lake Luzerne that they had rebuilt after it was destroyed in a massive fire in August 2020, as well as a renovated villa in Tuscany, which she calls “Casa Zidoro.”

Rachael loves the quiet Italian lifestyle, explaining: “I prefer to be in Italy because it’s quiet, and [our adopted] dog [Bella Boo Blue] hates New York.”

But, ever the compromiser, the chef added: “I spend as much [in New York] as I can. We work in both places.” John is a lifelong New Yorker, so Rachael encourages his love of the city that never sleeps.

“I tell John all the time, however much time he wants to spend here, do it,” she told the publication.

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Inside Rachael and John’s unique relationship

Rachael and John met in 2001 at a mutual friend’s party. “I like to say we saw each other among a sea of knees,” John said of their first meeting. The couple immediately hit it off and started dating. Four years later, in September 2005, Rachael and John tied the knot in their chosen home, Italy. 

For their 10th anniversary, the couple renewed their vows at the Tuscan villa, inviting celebrity chefs like Guy Fieri, Ken Oringer, and Anne Burrell, as well as 100 of their family and friends. 

While Rachael and John do not have children, they are dog parents. For years, they raised their beloved dog, Isaboo, who even flew to Tuscany for their wedding anniversary celebrations. In 2020, the pit bull tragically passed away.

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“Today @johnmcusimano and I mourn the loss of a dog,” Rachael wrote to Instagram. “A pitbull who taught us more about unconditional love, empathy, and understanding of one another than we could have ever imagined.”

Since then, they adopted another pup, Bella Boo Blue, who the couple named as a tribute to Isaboo.

All about Rachael’s Italian villa

Rachael and John bought their Tuscan villa in 2017. The chef opened up about her decision in 2021 in her magazine, Rachael Ray In Season, writing: “I love it there and have missed it. My mother’s family and both of John’s parents’ families hail from there. My husband and I got married there. And three years ago, I achieved my life’s goal of buying a property there, in Tuscany.”

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When she saw the home for the first time, Rachael said: “I fell in love with the fields and the views and I thought for the money we’d pay for a house, we could build something that’s really, truly ours.”