André Rush

Rush says his upcoming cookbook will emphasize food as medicine and healthy cooking, prompted by young people asking about diabetes.

“I want to put a lot of feel good stuff as far as how you use food as it should be used in the beginning, as medication, as love, as holistic”

Mick Unplugged: Chef André Rush: Strength Through Service (Oct 19, 2026) · Listen from 45:48

Rush recommends repeating the mantra "keep going, never give up, you can do anything" to oneself and to children.

“Keep going, never give up, you can do anything. I'll say it to myself, and I tell everybody to say it to your kids”

Mick Unplugged: Chef André Rush: Strength Through Service (Oct 19, 2026) · Listen from 22:00

Rush recounts that his father taught him to be the hardest worker in the room and to expect that someone will want him to fail.

“He said, always be the hardest work in the room. And no matter where you go, someone wants you to fail”

Mick Unplugged: Chef André Rush: Strength Through Service (Oct 19, 2026) · Listen from 6:57

Rush characterizes his memoir as a storytelling guide to getting through life rather than a traditional memoir.

“It wasn't your traditional memoir. It was a storytelling book about how to get through life and how you deal with life”

Mick Unplugged: Chef André Rush: Strength Through Service (Oct 19, 2026) · Listen from 39:47

Rush says the memoir was proposed by his publisher before his planned cookbook because he wanted to explain the reasons behind his work.

“The memoir was actually from the publisher. I wanted to do something before I did the cookbook. I didn't want to just have a cookbook”

Mick Unplugged: Chef André Rush: Strength Through Service (Oct 19, 2026) · Listen from 38:39

Rush says he won a position in the Pentagon culinary program after only four days of trial against competitors who had 30.

“I had four days and it was three other people competing for the same position, but they were there for 30 days”

Mick Unplugged: Chef André Rush: Strength Through Service (Oct 19, 2026) · Listen from 31:08

Rush says he entered about 20 events at military culinary competitions to gain experience, even from failure.

“So every time I went to compete, I would compete in like 20 events. When a normal person would compete in three or two or one, I would do 20 just so I could fail in all 20”

Mick Unplugged: Chef André Rush: Strength Through Service (Oct 19, 2026) · Listen from 28:55

Rush says that when he asked his chain of command about talking to someone after 9/11, he was implicitly warned that it could cost him his job.

“I went back to my chain and I said, hey, I think I may want to talk to someone. And they said, do you like your job?”

Mick Unplugged: Chef André Rush: Strength Through Service (Oct 19, 2026) · Listen from 18:16

Rush argues that PTSD was stigmatized in the military around 2001 despite claims to the contrary.

“back then, PTSD was kind of stigmatized. Even though they say it wasn't, it was”

Mick Unplugged: Chef André Rush: Strength Through Service (Oct 19, 2026) · Listen from 15:23

Rush says his purpose after his losses is to serve children and veterans.

“Everything that I do is for this, is for our cause, for the kids, for the veterans”

Mick Unplugged: Chef André Rush: Strength Through Service (Oct 19, 2026) · Listen from 8:18

Rush says he received the call about his daughter's death while at the height of his career, preparing to work with Gordon Ramsay in New York.

“I was going to New York City with Gordon Ramsay with my TV show, everything going when I got that phone call at four o'clock in the morning”

Mick Unplugged: Chef André Rush: Strength Through Service (Oct 19, 2026) · Listen from 8:18

Rush describes the White House kitchen as a place of total personal accountability.

“You don't have to have any alibi. You don't get to blame anybody but yourself. You're accountable for yourself”

Mick Unplugged: Chef André Rush: Strength Through Service (Oct 19, 2026) · Listen from 35:31

Rush says his pushups are a cause rather than a workout, and that exercise and diet should be tied to a reason.

“No, pushups are not my workout. They're my cause. There's a reason”

Mick Unplugged: Chef André Rush: Strength Through Service (Oct 19, 2026) · Listen from 24:13

Rush describes a fellow soldier at West Point running back to embrace him outside the therapist's office, which changed his attitude toward therapy.

“all of a sudden he runs back down to me and he sees me and he looks at me and we just stopped”

Mick Unplugged: Chef André Rush: Strength Through Service (Oct 19, 2026) · Listen from 18:57

Rush argues that strong men's belief that nothing can affect them is false.

“And us being our mind is nothing can touch us. Nothing can touch us. And that's a lie”

Mick Unplugged: Chef André Rush: Strength Through Service (Oct 19, 2026) · Listen from 17:43

Rush says his guiding principle, which he tells others, is never to become complacent.

“I will never become complacent. And that's what I tell people all the time. Never become complacent”

Mick Unplugged: Chef André Rush: Strength Through Service (Oct 19, 2026) · Listen from 4:28