Chef Boyardee
It's from 1928, before you were born.
- Maker
- Conagra Brands
- Type
- Canned pasta
- Debuted
- 1928
- Note
- based on a real chef, Ettore Boiardi
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About
As of 2026, it's 98 years old.
Chef Boyardee is a real Italian chef whose name was spelled phonetically so Americans could pronounce it — a marketing decision so practical it's almost rude. Ettore Boiardi's restaurant ravioli got so popular he started canning it in 1928, and the mustachioed chef on the label has been beaming at lunch ever since.
Canned spaghetti and meatballs, ravioli, Beefaroni — it made Italian-American comfort food shelf-stable, cheap, and edible straight from the can if you're truly committed.
Warm, hearty, and named after an actual person who actually existed, Chef Boyardee is the rare mascot who could really cook.
Chef Boyardee through the years
Founded by Ettore Boiardi
A real chef cans his popular restaurant pasta.
Spelled phonetically
The 'Boy-ar-dee' label helps Americans pronounce the name.
