<P> Flay was born in New York to Bill and Dorothy Flay . He was raised on the Upper East Side neighborhood of Manhattan . He is a fourth generation Irish American and was raised Catholic, attending denominational schools . </P> <P> At age 8, Flay asked for an Easy - Bake Oven for Christmas, despite his father's objections; his father thought that a G.I. Joe would be more gender - appropriate . He received both toys . </P> <P> Flay dropped out of high school at age 17 . He has said his first jobs in the restaurant industry were at a pizza parlor and Baskin - Robbins . He then took a position making salads at Joe Allen Restaurant in Manhattan's Theater District, where his father was a partner . The proprietor, Joe Allen, was impressed by Flay's natural ability and agreed to pay his partner's son's tuition at the French Culinary Institute . </P> <P> Flay received a degree in culinary arts and was a member of the first graduating class of the French Culinary Institute in 1984 . After culinary school, he started working as a sous - chef, quickly learning the culinary arts . At the Brighton Grill on Third Avenue, Flay was handed the executive chef's position after a week when the executive chef was fired . Flay quit when he realized he was not ready to run a kitchen . He took a position as a chef working for restaurateur Jonathan Waxman at Bud and Jams . Waxman introduced Flay to southwestern and Cajun cuisine, which came to define his culinary career . </P>

Where did bobby flay go to high school
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