# David Burtka
**David Burtka** (born 1975 in [Dearborn, Michigan](https://www.edgepedia.org/dearborn-michigan)) is an American actor and professional chef, known to television audiences for his recurring role as Scooter on the sitcom *How I Met Your Mother* and to food audiences as a [Le Cordon Bleu](https://www.edgepedia.org/le-cordon-bleu)-trained caterer, cookbook author, and host[1](https://www.tvinsider.com/people/david-burtka/). He is married to actor [Neil Patrick Harris](https://www.edgepedia.org/neil-patrick-harris), with whom he has collaborated on screen and in print[1](https://www.tvinsider.com/people/david-burtka/).
| Key fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| Born | 1975, Dearborn, Michigan[1](https://www.tvinsider.com/people/david-burtka/) |
| Training | Interlochen Center for the Arts; BFA, University of Michigan; William Esper Studios, New York[2](https://www.glwd.org/people/david-burtka/) |
| Culinary training | Le Cordon Bleu College of Culinary Arts Pasadena, graduated 2009; stints with Mario Batali at Babbo and with Thomas Keller[1](https://www.tvinsider.com/people/david-burtka/) • [3](https://montecristomagazine.com/business/david-burtka) |
| Catering | Founded and ran the catering company Gourmet M.D. in Los Angeles, which he sold before the family moved to New York[1](https://www.tvinsider.com/people/david-burtka/) • [3](https://montecristomagazine.com/business/david-burtka) |
| Marriage | Married Neil Patrick Harris on September 6, 2014, in Italy, with Pamela Fryman officiating; engaged since a 2011 Twitter announcement[1](https://www.tvinsider.com/people/david-burtka/) |
| Children | Twins Gideon Scott and Harper Grace, born 2010, via surrogate[4](https://www.nndb.com/people/287/000108960/) |
| First cookbook | *Life Is a Party* (April 2019), organized into four seasons with parties, playlists, and decoration tips[2](https://www.glwd.org/people/david-burtka/) • [5](https://www.forbes.com/sites/kristintablang/2018/10/11/neil-patrick-harris-and-david-burtka-on-dining-and-entertaining-in-new-york/) |
## Acting career
Burtka began acting at the Interlochen Center for the Arts in Michigan before earning a [Bachelor of Fine Arts](https://www.edgepedia.org/bachelor-of-fine-arts) at the University of Michigan, then continued his training at the William Esper Studios in New York[1](https://www.tvinsider.com/people/david-burtka/). His film debut came in the 1999 indie feature *24 Nights*, and his television debut followed in 2002 on NBC's *The West Wing*[1](https://www.tvinsider.com/people/david-burtka/).
**Stage work** anchored his early reputation. In 2001 he drew acclaim for playing The Boy in [Edward Albee](https://www.edgepedia.org/edward-albee)'s *The Play About Baby*, a performance that won him the Clarence Derwent Award as best male newcomer to New York theater[1](https://www.tvinsider.com/people/david-burtka/) • [6](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0123488/). He made his Broadway debut as Tulsa in the 2003 Broadway revival of *Gypsy*, starring [Bernadette Peters](https://www.edgepedia.org/bernadette-peters), and in 2004 originated the role of Matt in the 2004 world-premiere production of *The Opposite of Sex* at San Francisco's Magic Theatre[1](https://www.tvinsider.com/people/david-burtka/) • [15](https://playbill.com/article/bernadette-peters-gypsy-set-to-begin-rehearsals-com-111173) • [16](https://playbill.com/article/the-opposite-of-sex-musical-opens-at-san-franciscos-magic-theatre-oct-2-com-122238).
Television brought wider visibility. From 2006 he played Scooter, the emotionally needy high-school boyfriend of Lily ([Alyson Hannigan](https://www.edgepedia.org/alyson-hannigan)), on *How I Met Your Mother*, appearing in a recurring capacity across the show's run[1](https://www.tvinsider.com/people/david-burtka/) • [6](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0123488/). Screen credits through the following decade include a comic supporting role in the dance-movie parody *Dance-Off* (2014), a guest spot as [Michael Beck](https://www.edgepedia.org/michael-beck) on *American Horror Story: Freak Show* (2014), the film *Cicada* (2020), and an episode of *Uncoupled* (2022)[1](https://www.tvinsider.com/people/david-burtka/) • [6](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0123488/).
## Culinary career
Burtka has described cooking as therapeutic during a period when acting work in Los Angeles was scarce and his mother was ill with leukemia; he decided to take cooking seriously and enrolled at Le Cordon Bleu, graduating from the Pasadena campus in 2009[1](https://www.tvinsider.com/people/david-burtka/) • [7](https://hauteliving.com/2019/04/life-is-a-party-with-david-burtka-one-on-one/667634/). After culinary school he worked with [Mario Batali](https://www.edgepedia.org/mario-batali) at Babbo and with [Thomas Keller](https://www.edgepedia.org/thomas-keller), and also trained with chef and author Gina DePalma and with [Cat Cora](https://www.edgepedia.org/cat-cora)[1](https://www.tvinsider.com/people/david-burtka/) • [2](https://www.glwd.org/people/david-burtka/).
He then opened his own catering company, Gourmet M.D., in Los Angeles, where party-planning work for Hollywood clients gave him the experience he later drew on as an author[1](https://www.tvinsider.com/people/david-burtka/) • [7](https://hauteliving.com/2019/04/life-is-a-party-with-david-burtka-one-on-one/667634/). He sold the business when the family relocated to New York in 2014[3](https://montecristomagazine.com/business/david-burtka).
Television cooking work followed. He hosted the [Food Network](https://www.edgepedia.org/food-network) special *Life is a Party with David Burtka*, described in a 2019 interview as an award-winning special he had hosted three years earlier, and has appeared in cooking segments on *Barefoot Contessa*, *Rachael Ray*, *The Kitchen*, *Celebrity Dish*, *The Fablife*, and *The Chew*, among others[8](https://www.salon.com/2019/04/27/david-burtka-says-its-on-you-if-your-kids-are-fussy-eaters/) • [2](https://www.glwd.org/people/david-burtka/).
## Books and entertainment projects
**Life Is a Party** was his first cookbook, released in April 2019[2](https://www.glwd.org/people/david-burtka/). The book is broken down into four different seasons, and each season has different parties that can be thrown; it also includes playlists and decoration tips[5](https://www.forbes.com/sites/kristintablang/2018/10/11/neil-patrick-harris-and-david-burtka-on-dining-and-entertaining-in-new-york/). Burtka spent about a year and a half writing and testing it, drawing on family recipes he updated and on his catering background[7](https://hauteliving.com/2019/04/life-is-a-party-with-david-burtka-one-on-one/667634/). To accompany the release he created sixteen Spotify playlists, one for each type of party the book covers[9](https://newsroom.spotify.com/2019-04-22/chef-david-burtka-talks-about-matching-the-playlist-and-menu-to-elevate-any-occasion/).
In 2023 he created and starred in *[Drag Me to Dinner](https://www.edgepedia.org/drag-me-to-dinner)*, a Hulu reality series he made with Neil Patrick Harris as a way to combine their interest in drag and cooking; Burtka served as creator, executive producer, and on-screen Mentor across its ten episodes[10](https://www.timeout.com/newyork/news/david-burtka-on-his-favorite-nyc-restaurants-and-things-to-do-with-kids-111022) • [11](https://www.tvmaze.com/people/31648/david-burtka).
A second book, *Both Sides of the Glass*, followed with Harris as co-author, written with Zoë Chapin. An Associated Press review describes it as a book of easy-to-follow cocktail and mocktail recipes with commentary from Harris, who took mixology lessons out of a love of a good drink; Burtka is sober, so the paired nonalcoholic recipes are a deliberate feature of the book[12](https://apnews.com/article/80695a82312a7448ade024208c624524).
## Personal life
Burtka and Harris's relationship became public when Harris openly proclaimed his sexuality in 2007 amid rumors about the couple; Harris and Burtka announced their engagement on Twitter in 2011 and married in Italy on September 6, 2014[1](https://www.tvinsider.com/people/david-burtka/). Their twins, Gideon Scott and Harper Grace, were born via surrogate in 2010[4](https://www.nndb.com/people/287/000108960/). The family keeps a home in the Hamptons as well as in New York, where Burtka gardens, cans, and pickles produce he grows himself[10](https://www.timeout.com/newyork/news/david-burtka-on-his-favorite-nyc-restaurants-and-things-to-do-with-kids-111022).
Burtka has also done commercial and charity work as an entertaining personality. He collaborated with [Nespresso](https://www.edgepedia.org/nespresso) on a holiday entertaining guide in 2015 and has served as culinary chairman of the Central Park Conservancy's Taste of Summer benefit[3](https://montecristomagazine.com/business/david-burtka) • [13](https://www.modernluxury.com/david-burtka-on-new-cookbook-and-party-guests/). With Harris he has hosted events at the Food Network and Cooking Channel South Beach Wine and Food Festival, including the Heineken Light Burger Bash in 2019[14](https://www.axios.com/local/charlotte/sponsored/heinekenholiday-149189).
## References
1. [David Burtka - Actor, Chef, TV Insider](https://www.tvinsider.com/people/david-burtka/)
2. [David Burtka, God's Love We Deliver](https://www.glwd.org/people/david-burtka/)
3. [David Burtka: The daily grind, MONTECRISTO Magazine (November 23, 2015)](https://montecristomagazine.com/business/david-burtka)
4. [David Burtka, NNDB](https://www.nndb.com/people/287/000108960/)
5. [Neil Patrick Harris and David Burtka on Dining and Entertaining in New York, Forbes (October 11, 2018)](https://www.forbes.com/sites/kristintablang/2018/10/11/neil-patrick-harris-and-david-burtka-on-dining-and-entertaining-in-new-york/)
6. [David Burtka, IMDb](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0123488/)
7. [Life Is A Party With David Burtka: A One-On-One, Haute Living (April 16, 2019)](https://hauteliving.com/2019/04/life-is-a-party-with-david-burtka-one-on-one/667634/)
8. [David Burtka says it's on you if your kids are fussy eaters, Salon (April 27, 2019)](https://www.salon.com/2019/04/27/david-burtka-says-its-on-you-if-your-kids-are-fussy-eaters/)
9. [Chef David Burtka Talks about Matching the Playlist and Menu to Elevate Any Occasion, Spotify Newsroom (April 22, 2019)](https://newsroom.spotify.com/2019-04-22/chef-david-burtka-talks-about-matching-the-playlist-and-menu-to-elevate-any-occasion/)
10. [David Burtka on his favorite NYC restaurants and things to do with kids, Time Out New York (November 10, 2022)](https://www.timeout.com/newyork/news/david-burtka-on-his-favorite-nyc-restaurants-and-things-to-do-with-kids-111022)
11. [David Burtka, TVmaze](https://www.tvmaze.com/people/31648/david-burtka)
12. [Puzzles? Sports? Birdsong? The variety of new nonfiction, The Associated Press](https://apnews.com/article/80695a82312a7448ade024208c624524)
13. [David Burtka's Party Tips and Cookbook: Life Is a Party, Modern Luxury](https://www.modernluxury.com/david-burtka-on-new-cookbook-and-party-guests/)
14. [Win the ultimate foodie getaway to Miami with Heineken, Axios (November 21, 2018)](https://www.axios.com/local/charlotte/sponsored/heinekenholiday-149189)
15. [Bernadette Peters Gypsy Set to Begin Rehearsals](https://playbill.com/article/bernadette-peters-gypsy-set-to-begin-rehearsals-com-111173)
16. [The Opposite of Sex Musical Opens at San Francisco's Magic Theatre, Oct. 2](https://playbill.com/article/the-opposite-of-sex-musical-opens-at-san-franciscos-magic-theatre-oct-2-com-122238)
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*Topic: Encyclopedia › Arts and culture › Food, customs, and everyday culture › Food, cooking and hospitality › Restaurants, chefs, and culinary practice › Chefs, culinary professions, and hospitality › Television and celebrity chefs › American television chefs*
*Initially written Sep 17, 2026 · Reviewed: Oct 25, 2026 · Edited: Oct 12, 2026; Oct 15, 2026; Oct 25, 2026 · Last review: Oct 25, 2026*
*Copyright 2026 EdgeChat AI, a subsidiary of Biostate AI.*
License: Edgepedia Community License 1.0, https://www.edgepedia.org/edgepedia/license