My name is Richard Hagen, better known as Richard Eats. I am a food and hospitality content creator based in Bay City, Michigan. I am married to the love of my life, Breanna, and together we are raising two amazing kids.
I have always been a creative at heart. Growing up, I was obsessed with early-era YouTube and saved my paper route money to buy my first digital camera. I was constantly filming goofy skits with friends, capturing everyday chaos, and editing videos on Windows Movie Maker back in middle school. Creating content has always been part of who I am.
Cooking, however, was never my strong suit. Burnt hot dogs were common, and boiling water took me far longer to master than I would like to admit. Everything changed in 2020 when the world shut down during COVID. Takeout was not an option, fast food runs stopped, and I could not rely on family dropping off meals. That is when I turned to social media cooking creators to learn my way around the grill and the kitchen.
With a background in video editing and a growing interest in food, I decided to combine the two and Richard Eats was born. What started as experimenting with recipes and filming simple food videos quickly grew into the social channels you see today.
In 2023, I made the leap and left my corporate job to pursue content creation full time. I wanted a better future for my family and more time with my kids while they are young. It was a scary decision, but growth lives outside of comfort zones. Looking back, it was one of the best choices I have ever made.
When we are not tossing cream cheese into recipes in the kitchen, my wife and I enjoy working out, spending time with our kids, traveling, and hanging out at our favorite local spots. We are also huge Detroit Lions fans and are entering our seventh year as season ticket holders, spending many fall weekends in downtown Detroit cheering them on.
Today, our content reaches millions of people each month, and our community has grown to nearly three million followers across all social platforms.
Thank you for being here. We are just getting started.
