Frances Tiafoe is unquestionably talented. No argument can be made otherwise for a tennis player with multiple titles to their name. But Tiafoe is much more than just a person who plays tennis.
He puts his money where his mouth is. He doesn't just say he wants to do good things. He does. He started the Frances Tiafoe Fund with the ATP in 2023, and he recently reportedly donated a $30,000 scholarship to a University of Louisville student-athlete. Frances is a good player, but he is an elite person.
He has recently been involved in a different walk of life, however. He, evian®, and Master Chef Daniel Boulud partnered on creating a unique menu that will be released at Boulud's New York City restaurant, DANIEL, during semifinals and finals weekend at the US Open in September.
Frances Tiafoe talks with Lob and Smash about new food venture and his 2025 US Open hopes
Among the items is a favorite from Tiafoe's childhood: Peanut butter stew. Of course, the stew will have Boulud's spin, too, so like the final Grand Slam of the year, the Tiafoe-inspired food at DANIEL also shouldn't be missed.
Speaking with Lob and Smash recently, the tennis star spoke about collaborating with evian and Boulud, plus what his dream victory in tennis would be. Hint: It very likely has something to do with the US Open.
As far as the food items are concerned, Tiafoe said, "All of these things kind of really resonated with me. Obviously, peanut butter stew, dishes I grew up with, just a bunch of things like that. One of my favorite drinks, just things like that, just things I'm personally into. And luckily, (Boulud and I) both kind of found a great synergy with that, and kind of just made it happen. Obviously, I'm really happy that this was able to go and hope everyone else (will) as well."
Tiafoe found a parallel between playing high-end tennis and creating high-quality food.
He added, "There's a ton of tennis players, a lot of chefs, a lot of different type of restaurants, cuisines, what have you. But everyone kind of has their own niche, their own techniques and swagger and play. I think that's probably the parallel in both with food and tennis. You got to hope that you're kind of style or play resonates with other people. You're kind of grabbing people that are going to like it and not, but hopefully there's a large, large portion that do and want to be a part of it."
For people who love to play a lot of tennis, but might not play anywhere near the level that Tiafoe does, he had some advice. Drink lots of water (preferrably evian), get lots of sleep, and watch what you eat before a match.
Tiafoe stated, "I think hydration is paramount. I think a certain amount of hours of sleep is very, very important. I think sleep is tremendously underrated, can't get it back, and I think rest is ultimately the best recovery. But evian's been incredible. I've been hydrating way more than I ever have. In the morning, I'm chugging at least a bottle of evian before I move and do anything."
As for pre-match food, he keeps it simple. No food at least an hour before a match and even then it is only chicken and rice or salmon and rice.
As for winning the US Open, maybe an American man taking the title seems far-fetched at this point, but only because the idea of any tournament not being claimed by Jannik Sinner or Carlos Alcaraz appears far-fetched. The two players have combined to win the last seven majors. Sinner won in New York last year.
But there was once a time when American men competed nearly every year for the US Open title. The last to win it, however, was Andy Roddick in 2003. 22 years is a long time. Tiafoe said winning in New York would be the biggest achievement he could imagine in tennis.
He told Lob and Smash, "(The US Open is the) best tournament in the world. I don't get that kind of love anywhere except when I play my 500 in the Citi (Open) here in DC. But (in New York), I've had some of my best moments in the world. I feel like it's the reason why people know who I am and understand the journey and the story. It's a different feeling every time I go. 24,000 people screaming your name. You know, a kid who grew up the way I did."
Part of that story includes understanding those who helped Tiafoe get to where he is now. Arthur Ashe is one of those people. The main stadium at the US Open is named after the icon. The current ATP No. 17 feels a duty to play as well as possible to honor Ashe.
He said, "The name of the stadium, you know, the late, great Arthur Ashe, it hits different every time. (A) certain level of, you know, respect and gratitude, I have even just walking on the court and kind of just owe it to that guy, I owe it to myself to kind of give everything I got every time I'm out there. It's only great that I've had some of my best memories on a court named after that guy. So, you know, it's a different fuel I have."
As for the US Open itself, it falls just at the end of summer and ends just as the NFL season is starting the the baseball playoffs haven't begun. It is worthy of its own niche and deserves the spotlight.
Tiafoe added, "To be honest, that's the only tournament really in the States where you were not competing against anything. It's all about tennis, and you can feel that you know a bunch of people from different walks of life, sports, entertainment...just regular folk. A ton of different demographics come and watch because that's everything for those two weeks. The U.S. Open's a machine, man. It's a totally different beast, and happy to be a part of it and have a chance to contend for the event, and hopefully (win) it."
If Frances Tiafoe does win the US Open, he is going to celebrate with chocolate. A lot of it.
He said, "I'm crushing chocolates. I'm crushing Oreos, Hershey's, whatever case, milkshakes...I love food. I mean, that's kind of like my thing. So you're so disciplined throughout the year and doing making the right choices. I mean, I think that's where you got to murder those types of things. That's why I'm celebrating food. But you know, they say (great journeys) start with hard work and end with champagne. So you got to put some champagne in there as well."