Rishia Haas became a familiar name to fans of celebrity chef Andrew Zimmern, yet she has spent most of her life avoiding the spotlight rather than chasing it. While her former husband built a television career around bold flavors and bigger-than-life adventures, Rishia chose a much quieter path centered on family, recovery work, and community service. This article looks closely at who Rishia Haas really is, from her upbringing in Minnesota to her career, her marriage to Andrew Zimmern, their eventual divorce, and the private life she leads today.
Rishia Haas Bio Table
| Category | Details |
|---|---|
| Full Name | Rishia Haas |
| Known For | Ex-wife of chef Andrew Zimmern |
| Nationality | American |
| Hometown | Anoka, Minnesota, USA |
| Education | Anoka High School; Augsburg University |
| Profession | Administrative professional, recovery support specialist |
| Notable Employers | The Retreat, Hazelden Betty Ford Foundation |
| Met Andrew Zimmern | 1999, Minnesota cooking school |
| Marriage Date | December 26, 2002 |
| Son | Noah Zimmern, born 2005 |
| Divorce Announced | 2018 |
| Marital Status | Divorced, not remarried |
| Social Media | None publicly known |
| Current Residence | Minnesota, USA |
Who Is Rishia Haas?
Rishia Haas is an American administrative professional best known publicly as the former wife of chef and television host Andrew Zimmern, star of Bizarre Foods. Away from that connection, she has built her own identity through steady work in the recovery and healthcare field, along with a long-standing commitment to raising her son with intention and care. Unlike many people connected to celebrities, Rishia has never sought media attention, given interviews, or maintained a public social media presence. Everything known about her comes from a handful of interviews Andrew Zimmern has given over the years and occasional mentions in profiles about him.
Early Life and Family Background
Rishia Haas grew up in Minnesota, a state she has called home for her entire life. Various reports place her hometown in the Anoka area of Minnesota, and she attended Anoka High School during her teenage years. Details about her parents and siblings remain limited, since Rishia has never discussed her family history publicly. What is consistently reported is that she was raised in a close-knit Midwestern household that valued hard work and privacy, values she appears to have carried into her adult life.
Because Rishia has never granted interviews of her own, much of what the public knows about her childhood comes secondhand through profiles written about Andrew Zimmern’s personal life. This lack of firsthand information is itself telling. It reflects a woman who has intentionally kept her story separate from her ex husband’s public persona.
Education
After finishing high school, Rishia Haas continued her education in the Minneapolis area, where she studied at Augsburg University (formerly Augsburg College). Her time there helped shape the administrative and organizational skills she would later use throughout her professional career. Augsburg, a private university in Minneapolis, is known for its strong community focus, a theme that seems to have stayed with Rishia well beyond her college years.
Career and Professional Life
Long before she became known as Andrew Zimmern’s wife, Rishia Haas was building a career of her own. She worked at a cooking school store in Minnesota, a job that would later change the course of her life. Beyond that early role, Rishia’s professional background centers on administrative work within the recovery and healthcare industry.
She spent time as an admissions coordinator at The Retreat, also known as “Alive with the Spirit of Recovery,” a Minnesota based rehabilitation center that offers alternative programs for people struggling with alcohol addiction. Later, she worked as an administrative assistant at the Hazelden Betty Ford Foundation, one of the most respected addiction treatment organizations in the country. The foundation was formed in 2014 when the Minnesota based Hazelden Foundation merged with the Betty Ford Center in California.
This career path is significant for a reason that goes beyond a simple job title. Andrew Zimmern has spoken openly about his own struggles with addiction earlier in his life, including a period when he experienced homelessness. Rishia’s professional life in the recovery field placed her directly in a world that understood addiction, recovery, and the long road to rebuilding a stable life. Several sources note that her support played a meaningful role in Andrew’s recovery journey during the years they were together.
In addition to her administrative career, some reports mention that Rishia has spent time working with the University of Minnesota Bee Lab, reflecting an interest in beekeeping and community focused projects. This detail, while smaller, fits the overall picture of a woman drawn to hands on, purpose driven work rather than public recognition.
How Rishia Haas Met Andrew Zimmern
Rishia Haas and Andrew Zimmern crossed paths in Minnesota around 1999. At the time, Andrew was teaching cooking classes at a school where Rishia worked in the store that sold cookware and kitchen supplies. Their professional interaction slowly turned into a friendship, and that friendship eventually grew into a romantic relationship.
Andrew Zimmern was in a different stage of life during this period. He had already gone through serious personal struggles, including addiction, and was working to rebuild his career and his life. Meeting Rishia coincided with a period of positive change for him, and many accounts suggest that her steady presence helped support his recovery and his return to a stable career path.
Marriage to Andrew Zimmern
After dating for a few years, Rishia Haas and Andrew Zimmern got married on December 26, 2002. The wedding was a small, intimate event attended by close family and friends rather than a large celebrity affair, which fits the low key approach Rishia has taken toward her personal life ever since.
Three years into their marriage, the couple welcomed their only child, a son named Noah Zimmern, born in 2005. Around the same period, Andrew’s career began to shift dramatically. He left the traditional restaurant business behind and stepped into television, eventually launching Bizarre Foods with Andrew Zimmern on the Travel Channel in 2006. The show became a major hit and turned Andrew into a household name, known for traveling the globe and sampling unusual dishes from different cultures.
While Andrew’s career took off, Rishia remained in Minnesota, focused on raising Noah and maintaining a stable home life. She largely stayed out of the public eye during this time, rarely appearing at industry events and almost never speaking to the press.
Life as a Wife and Mother
Those close to the family have described Rishia Haas as a devoted and grounded mother. With Andrew traveling extensively for work, much of the day to day responsibility of raising Noah fell to Rishia. She managed the household, supported her son’s daily routine, and worked to shield him from the pressures that can come with having a famous parent.
Andrew Zimmern has acknowledged in interviews that his demanding travel schedule created strain within the marriage. In one candid interview, he admitted that fame brought unwanted attention to his family, at times overwhelming both his wife and son. He also took personal responsibility for not being present enough at home, a factor he later cited as central to the couple’s eventual separation.
Why Rishia Haas and Andrew Zimmern Divorced
After nearly sixteen years of marriage, Rishia Haas and Andrew Zimmern announced their divorce in 2018. The split was widely reported as amicable, with both parties expressing a desire to prioritize their son’s well being throughout the process. Andrew Zimmern spoke candidly to the New York Times about the toll his career had taken on his marriage, stating that his packed schedule left little room for the family life he wanted to maintain.
In interviews following the split, Andrew took full accountability for his role in the marriage’s end. He explained that despite his wife giving him countless opportunities to make things right, his career commitments consistently pulled him away from home. The divorce was finalized in the years following the initial announcement, and the couple has continued to co-parent their son ever since.
Rather than turning their separation into a public conflict, both Rishia and Andrew appear to have prioritized stability for Noah. Andrew has publicly praised his ex wife’s strength as a parent, notably sharing a heartfelt tribute to her on Mother’s Day in 2020, describing her as the bravest mother he knows and crediting her with holding the family together through difficult circumstances.
Rishia Haas Today
Since the divorce, Rishia Haas has continued to live a private life in Minnesota, close to where she raised her son. She has not remarried and does not maintain any known public social media accounts, a choice that has helped her avoid the attention that often follows people connected to celebrities. She continues to work within the healthcare and recovery field, and she remains actively involved in raising Noah, now a young adult.
Reports about her financial standing vary widely, with some estimates placing her net worth in the millions due to her divorce settlement and career earnings, while other sources offer more conservative estimates. Because Rishia has never confirmed any figures publicly, exact numbers should be treated as unverified estimates rather than established fact.
What remains consistent across every account of her life is a clear picture of a woman who values substance over spotlight. Rishia Haas built a meaningful career supporting people through addiction recovery, raised her son with care during a demanding period in her marriage, and handled a high profile divorce with dignity rather than drama.
Conclusion
Rishia Haas never set out to become a public figure, and even after years connected to a well known television personality, she has kept her life firmly private. Her story reflects steady dedication to family, meaningful work in addiction recovery, and quiet resilience through a high profile divorce. While Andrew Zimmern’s career brought fame to their household, Rishia Haas built a life defined by purpose rather than publicity, and that choice continues to define her today.
Frequently Asked Questions
1. Who is Rishia Haas?
Rishia Haas is an American administrative professional known publicly as the ex-wife of chef and television host Andrew Zimmern.
2. Is Rishia Haas still married to Andrew Zimmern?
No. The couple divorced in 2018 after nearly sixteen years of marriage, and neither has remarried since.
3. Does Rishia Haas have children?
Yes. Rishia and Andrew Zimmern have one son together, Noah Zimmern, born in 2005.
4. What does Rishia Haas do for a living?
Rishia has worked in administrative and recovery support roles, including positions at The Retreat and the Hazelden Betty Ford Foundation.
5. Why did Rishia Haas and Andrew Zimmern divorce?
Andrew Zimmern has publicly stated that his demanding travel schedule and television career left him unable to be present enough at home, which he cited as the main reason for the divorce.
