David Bouley was born and raised in Connecticut. He worked in restaurants from an early age, spending time in New Mexico, Cape Cod, and eventually France. After studying at the Sorbonne, he worked for some of Europe's most acclaimed chefs, including Roger Vergé, Paul Bocuse, Joël Robuchon, Gaston Lenôtre, and Frédy Girardet. Bouley first became interested in Austrian cuisine when he worked as a cook for the Vienna Park restaurant in New York City at the beginning of his career. In 1987, he opened his own restaurant, Bouley, in Tribeca. It earned four stars from the New York Times and received James Beard Foundation awards for best restaurant and best chef. From 1991 to 1996, Bouley was rated the #1 restaurant in the Zagat survey. In 1997, Bouley Bakery opened to enormous acclaim, earning David his second four-star review in the Times.

In 1999, David opened Danube, featuring his interpretation of Eastern European cuisines. In February 2002, Bouley Bakery was relaunched as Bouley, picking up where David's first restaurant left off. East of Paris is his first cookbook.