Thanks to his French accent and cooking talents, dreamy chef from My Kitchen Rules Manu Feildel has often had fans swooning over him.
Watch Below: Johanna meets Manu and Clarissa Feildel
But when the MKR and Australia’s Got Talent judge met his now-wife Clarissa Weerasena at Sydney’s Ivy night club in 2011, she had a slightly different reaction.
Clarissa revealed to The Australian’s Women’s Weekly in 2016 that she had no idea who the famous chef was.
“He comes up to me and says, ‘Your friend says that you can cook better than me,’ and I said, ‘I probably can,'” recalled Clarissa. “I thought, who the hell are you?”
Manu also shared his side of their fateful first meeting in an interview with TV WEEK.
“We met in a lift going to a nightclub in Sydney. She didn’t know who I was,” he explained.
“We didn’t see each other for three months after that, then we caught up for a drink. I was nervous, because three months had passed. We didn’t see each other for another three months, then had some lunch. The rest is history.”
But it was Clarissa’s talents in the kitchen that really sealed the deal for the chef, who is famous for his strong views on sauce accompanying meals.
After tasting one of her dishes, Manu had found The One.
“Clarissa ticked all the boxes – and that was the biggest box. I was like, thank God! She loves eating and she loves cooking – she’s perfect!” he told The Australian Women’s Weekly.
Head over heels in love, Manu popped the question to the jewellery designer in 2013 and the couple welcomed daughter Charlee in 2015.
Manu was previously in a 12-year relationship with Ronnie Morshead and they share son Jonti together.
After a four-year engagement, the smitten pair finally tied the knot in what Manu described as a “beautiful intimate ceremony” in January 2018.
The celebrity chef announced the happy news on his Instagram account at the time.
“I’ve often said don’t believe what you read in the press but now you hear it from the horse’s mouth, yes it’s true I am married!” he wrote.
“Last week I married the love of my life Clarissa in a beautiful intimate ceremony. We had a wonderful day surrounded by family and friends and lots of love and laughter.”
And the fairytale romance doesn’t look set to end anytime soon! In March, last year Manu shared a sweet snap with his glamorous wife as they celebrated his 46th birthday.
“Happy B’day to me!!! 46 year young and going strong. Best wife, best son, best daughter, best life,” he gushed.
Watch below: Manu Feildel’s daughter is a chip off the old block
What’s their secret? you may ask.
In an interview with Now To Love last year, the beloved chef revealed that it comes down to a few simple things – one of which, to no surprise, is cooking.
“We cook every day and that’s what we love doing, we cook for each other, and my wife is a great cook,” he revealed.
“Spending time together and making sure you don’t take each other for granted. You know, sometimes when you’ve been together for too long, you kind of forget what the relationship started with.”
This story was featured on our sister site, Now To Love.
