Antoni Janusz Porowski (born March 14, 1984)[1] is a Polish-Canadian television personality, actor, author, chef, and model. He is the food and wine expert on the Netflix series Queer Eye.

. . . Antoni Porowski . . .

Porowski was born in Montreal, Quebec, to Polish parents after they emigrated to Canada with his two older sisters. His father is a physician.[2] He grew up speaking Polish, English, and French.[2] He and his parents moved to Glade Springs, West Virginia, when he was twelve, and he resided there and in Montreal throughout his high school years before returning to Montreal to attend Marianopolis College and then university.[3]

After graduating from Concordia University with a bachelor’s degree in Psychology, Porowski moved to New York City to study acting at the Neighborhood Playhouse School of the Theatre, from which he graduated in 2011.[2][4][5][6] He taught himself to cook by referring to his grandmother’s cooking techniques.[7][8]

Upon moving to New York City, Porowski began auditioning for various acting roles. He has stated that his Polish last name made it difficult for him to find work, which at the time made him consider anglicizing his last name.[2] He has landed roles in movies such as Elliot Loves (2012), Daddy’s Boy (2016), The Pretenders (2018), and as the lead officer in a 2014 episode of TV series The Blacklist.[9] Porowski was also featured in the 2015 short docudrama about the Vinnytsia massacre, To My Father, as Adam Bandrowski.[10] The short film was part of the 2016 Cannes Film Festival‘s Short Film Corner.

In the meantime, he worked in food service to cover his rent, first working as a busboy at a family-run Polish restaurant.[5] He worked his way up in the restaurant industry, working as a waiter and sommelier, eventually managing a Bond Street sushi restaurant.[2][11]

In December 2017, it was announced that Porowski was hired as the food and wine expert in the Netflix revival of Queer Eye, which began airing in February 2018.[12]

In April 2018, Porowski signed a deal with Houghton Mifflin Harcourt for his first cookbook, released in Spring 2019.[13] In June 2018, he announced that he would be opening The Village Den, a fast-casual restaurant in New York City’s West Village.[11] Additionally, Porowski deals vintage furniture.[14]

On September 10, 2018, Porowski alongside co-hosts of Queer Eye received an Emmy for Outstanding Structured Reality Program.[15]

Porowski was featured in Taylor Swift‘s “You Need to Calm Down” music video, released on June 17, 2019.[16]

In November 2019, he was named Sexiest Reality Star by People magazine.[17]

In June 2021 Porowski announced he is part of the new Equaversity Foundation, established to organize international fundraising to support the LGBT+ community in Poland.[18]

. . . Antoni Porowski . . .

. . . Antoni Porowski . . .