All About Norah O’Donnell’s Husband Geoff Tracy: His Restaurant Business

Geoff Tracy is a chef and businessman from New York City known to mass as the husband of CBS journalist Norah O’Donnell. Though his wife is much more famous than him, Tracy’s career as a restaurant entrepreneur is admirable in itself. 

They both are at the top of their respective careers. The couple owns more than six restaurants in the Washington, D.C. area alone including others in Virginia, Maryland, and a few more states. So, how did the couple do it? How are they handling their busy work schedule and family life? Here is everything you need to know about Norah O’Donnell’s husband Geoff.

Key Takeways

• Norah’s life partner Geoff has over five restaurants.
• Norah is still married to him and is the mother of three children with her spouse.
• They wed in an indoor wedding ceremony.
• Geoff and his wife also co-wrote a cookbook together.
• The lovebirds first came across while at Georgetown University.

Norah O’Donnell’s Husband Geoff Tracy Is A Succesful Restauranter

Yes, Norah’s spouse Geoff has made quite a name in the restaurant business. He opened his own restaurant called Chef Geoff’s in Washington D.C. just after graduating in 2000. Upon receiving success from his venture, Tracy opened a second version of Chef Geoff’s in the D.C. downtown area in 2002.

He was still in his 20s at the time of his 2nd business. Four years later, O’Donnell’s husband opened his third restaurant in Chevy Chase, Maryland, called LIA’s. In 2008, he opened yet another Maryland restaurant called Hank’s Tavern.

His Other Restaurants

The Georgetown University alum also operates the 200-seat restaurant in partnership with his brother Chris Tracy. His fifth restaurant, Chef Geoff’s Tysons Corner opened in 2009 in Vienna, VA. Geoff’s restaurant serves 750,000 guests every year and employs nearly 300 people.

Tracy oversees the menu, marketing, finances, and concept of the restaurants.

Norah and Geoff’s Cookbook

In addition to his restaurant business, Norah’s hubby is also the co-author of the book Baby Love – Healthy, Easy, Delicious Meals for Your Baby and Toddler. It was released in 2010. And another co-author of the book is none other than Tracy’s wife, Norah O’Donnell, herself.

This New York Times Best Seller teaches busy parents how to feed “Healthy, Easy, Delicious Meals for Your Baby and Toddler”. St. Martin’s Press is the one that published the book.

Geoff Tracy’s Achievements 

The chef serves as an executive on the board of the Restaurant Association of Metropolitan Washington. Additionally, he contributes to more than 150 charities and organizations every year in the form of silent auctions, fundraising appearances, and even the Chef Geoff-sponsored Little League team.

In 2006, the National Restaurant Association awarded Geoff with The Best Neighbor Award for his contributions to the community. In 2009, he received Albert Uster’s “Chef of the Year Award”. Tracy is also a member of the Washington Baltimore chapter of the Young Presidents Organization.

In 2010, Washington Business Journal named him one of the top 40 business people under the age of 40.  The following year, Chef Geoff’s Tysons won the RAMMY award for “Hottest Restaurant Bar Scene”.

In 2009, 2011, 2017, and 2018, Bethesda Magazine in its annual Reader’s Choice Awards named LIA the “Best Restaurant in Chevy Chase.” Furthermore, in 2012, the readers of Washingtonian Magazine selected Tracy as “Best Local Chef.”

In 2019, Georgetown Pediatrics Gala honored Geoff with the Flame of Hope award for his work in promoting healthy eating in children.

Norah’s Husband Geoff Is a Political Advocate

The LIA’s owner is also known for high-profile political campaigns. In 2006, Tracy led a campaign to repeal the DC Candle Tax. Six years later, in 2012, he initiated a highly popular movement against speed cameras.

In 2018, O’Donnell’s spouse Geoff Tracy sued the Commonwealth of Virginia over the constitutionality of regulations that constricted his free speech in paid advertising.  In consequence, the suit led to legislation abolishing those regulations starting in 2019.

Norah O’Donnell and Her Partner Geoff Tracy Married in 2001

The couple exchanged their vows on June 8, 2001. Norah and her spouse Geoff tied the knot in an in-door wedding ceremony surrounded by their families and friends. While there isn’t more about their nuptial, they are happily married ever since.

Their First Meeting and Engagement

As for their first meeting, they crossed paths at Georgetown University. In the Washington Post, Norah’s hubby mentioned he first saw his future wife along with her roommate in a cafeteria line in college during his freshman year.

He proposed to O’Donnell at a dinner at French Laundry, Thomas Keller’s legendary restaurant in Yountville, California. In an interview, Tracy’s wife O’Donnell revealed she and Tracy painted the walls of the latter’s first restaurant together, as they could not afford painters or contractors.

In a 2019, interview with CBS’s Watch! Magazine, O’Donnell described her man as an incredibly supportive and organized man, adding that he handles the most logistics at home. When asked how they manage a work/life balance when each of them — lives in a different city most of the time, O’Donnell answered by saying that they do it through meticulous scheduling.

The couple maintains seven Google Calendars—there’s one for each, the kids, and even their nanny. Tracy works two years out to schedule their vacations.

They Own A Million Dollar Property

Tracy along with his wife O’Donnell resides in the Upper West Side of New York City, with the latter splitting time between Washington D.C., and the city. In 2010, the reporter and the chef bought a $3.2 million home in D.C.’s Wesley Heights.

They were initially planning on redoing their kitchen in 2013, but O’Donnell got a job at CBS News and had to move to New York.

As the Washington Post notes, they split their time between a New York apartment and their D.C. home. The home consists of seven bedrooms and four levels.

Geoff Tracy’s Wife O’Donnell Is An Emmy Winner  

Tracy’s wife of 20 years, Norah O’Donnell, currently anchors the CBS Evening News. In addition, she is a correspondent for 60 Minutes and CBS’ morning show — Face the Nation. Her newscast garnered 7,437 million views in April of 2020, making her the most-watched woman in national TV news.

O’Donnell was formerly the co-anchor of CBS This Morning and worked for NBC News for over a decade. Further, Washingtonian Magazine named her among Washington’s 100 most powerful women.

Norah O’Donnell’s Husband Is The Father of Three Children With Her

Along with his successful marriage, Geoff is also the proud father of three kids with the love of his life. The loving duo has twins, Henry and Grace, 14, and another daughter, Riley Norah Tracy, 13.

In April 2020, Mrs. Geoff shared with People how she was handling raising children while working from home due to the pandemic, saying 2020. She said she was on a call with someone from the White House and her daughter was shouting at her complaining about the printer.

Geoff’s wife added that most of the time she is on a conference call whilst cooking breakfast for the kids. She, though mentioned they have the ‘stop video’ feature on Zoom.

Geoff Filed a Lawsuit Against Virginia Law in 2018

In March 2018, Norah’s hubby Tracy filed a lawsuit against the Virginia Department of Alcoholic Beverage Control challenging the state’s right to bar him from fully promoting happy hour specials.

The existing law prohibited restaurants and bars in Virginia from listing discounted prices in any marketing materials and can only use generic terms such as “happy hour” and “drink specials” when announcing offerings. For instance, including information about the length of happy hour is fine; mentioning “two-for-one” drink specials was not.

Tracy and his attorneys argued the rules were unfair. They emphasized the laws hindered his First Amendment rights and asked to put bureaucrats on notice that they can’t censor truthful, non-misleading information.

Geoff is NYC Native; His College Details Too 

O’Donnell’s spouse Geoff grew up partly in Hartford, Connecticut. In an interview with Courant in September 2010, Tracy remembered the time when he used to live in both Hartford and West Hartford and in Wallingford.

Talking more about his education, Geoff went to Norfeldt for elementary school, King Philip for middle school, Hall High School for ninth grade, and then to Choate Rosemary Hall.

Eventually, the future husband of Norah graduated from Georgetown University in 1995 with a degree in theology. He wrote his thesis on the religious dialogue between Christians and Muslims.

Following that, he went on to graduate first in his class at the Culinary Institute of America in Hyde Park, NY.