Barbieri was born in Medicina (BO) in 1962 and after graduating from the hotel school in Bologna, he worked as a third cook on cruise ships for a year and a half before returning to Italy and starting to work as a station chef in various establishments on the Romagna Riviera. In addition to having obtained seven Michelin stars in his career, Bruno Barbieri is also considered the "most elegant and sharp-tongued judge on TV" thanks to his longstanding participation in MasterChef Italy (Sky Uno), of which he has been a judge since the first edition, as well as other television programs including Bruno Barbieri - 4 Hotel (Sky Uno) and Cuochi d'Italia - The World Championship (TV8).