Michael Chiarello, a celebrity chef and former Food Network star, has died
The popular TV chef, who was a regular on shows such as the Today Show and The View, was 61 years old at his time of death.
Who was Michael Chiarello?
Michael Chiarello was an American celebrity chef who was known for Italian-influenced California cuisine.
He hosted the cooking show Easy Entertaining with Michael Chiarello on Food Network and NapaStyle on Fine Living Network.
Chiarello owned a winery called Chiarello Family Vineyards, located in Yountville, CA. He was the owner of a tapas restaurant named Coqueta and an Italian restaurant named Bottega and has locations in Napa Valley, California and San Francisco, California.
Chiarello also owned NapaStyle in Yountville, CA, which sold a selection of exclusive drinkware, serverware, and designer tabletop pieces but closed on January 4, 2016.
He was a competitor on the fourth season of The Next Iron Chef. In the spring of 2013, Chiarello opened a tapas restaurant named Coqueta on San Francisco’s waterfront.
In March 2016, two former employees of Coqueta filed lawsuits alleging sexual harassment and labor law violations against Michael Chiarello and his restaurant group Gruppo Chiarello; the s3xual harassment lawsuit was settled in 2017.
Early life and career
Born to an Italian-American family, Chiarello became prominent at a young age.
After graduating from the Culinary Institute of America in 1982, he studied hospitality management at Florida International University, receiving his bachelor’s degree in 1984.
The next year, he opened The Grand Bay Hotel in Coconut Grove, Florida, and Toby’s Bar and Grill. He was honored as 1985’s Chef of the Year by Food & Wine Magazine.
Later in the 1980s, Chiarello moved back to his home state of California, making his home in the Napa Valley.
One of his first endeavors was to be a chef at The Heritage Restaurant in Turlock, which failed and went bankrupt.
He opened the Tra Vigne restaurant, creating a menu influenced by the cuisine of his family’s native Calabria and rife with local seasonal ingredients.
He has since served as executive chef in numerous American restaurants including Caffe Museo in San Francisco, Ajax Tavern and Bump’s in Aspen, Colorado, and Bisect in Scottsdale, Arizona.
Media career
His first cooking show, Season by Season, debuted on PBS in 2001. He hosted two more series for PBS, Michael Chiarello’s Napa and Michael Chiarello’s Napa:
Casual Cooking, over the next two years before moving to the Food Network to host Easy Entertaining in 2003.
In 2004, his show NapaStyle premiered on the Food Network’s sister network Fine Living Network.
In 2009, Chiarello was a contestant on Top Chef Masters, winning his preliminary round and advancing to the championship round, placing second to winner Rick Bayless.
Reruns of Easy Entertaining now appear on Food Network’s sister network Cooking Channel.
In 2011, Chiarello appeared in the Visit California promotional film aimed at boosting tourism from the UK.
Personal life and death
In 2003, Chiarello married Eileen Marie Gordon, with whom he had one son, Aidan, born in 2005. He had three daughters, Margaux, Felicia, and Giana, from his previous marriage. In 2019, Chiarello filed for divorce from Gordon.
Michael Chiarello died at the age of 61 on October 6, 2023.
Michael Chiarello Death Cause
The star chef Michael Chiarello’s death was caused by an allergic reaction, according to the Napa County coroner.
The official says the allergic reaction set off an anaphylactic shock, which in turn led Chiarello to suffer a heart attack, the coroner told TMZ on Wednesday.
The celebrity chef died on October 7 at the age of 61, but so far it is unknown what exactly sparked his allergic reaction.
According to the coroner, doctors were able to restart Chiarello’s heart after he was taken to Queen of the Valley Medical Center in Napa, California.
However, he later succumbed to hypoxic-ischemic encephalopathy, a form of brain dysfunction caused by a prolonged lack of oxygen-rich blood flow, which would have been shut off when he suffered his heart attack.
Among the coroner’s notable findings was that Chiarello had cocaine in his system from earlier drug use.
He described the stimulant’s presence as a ‘significant condition,’ but he stressed that Chiarello’s death was not brought on by a drug overdose.
There are still questions unanswered about his allergic reaction, as it’s unclear what may have caused it, and whether it was a food-based allergen or something else, such as an insect sting.
The Easy Entertaining With Michael Chiarello would certainly have been versed in numerous foods due to his profession as a chef, but allergies can develop over time and build up in severity over years of exposure.
Although it is most common for adult-onset allergies to manifest in one’s 20s and 30s, adults of any age can still develop new allergies.
The most widely reported triggers causing anaphylactic shock are insect stings (wasp and bee stings in particular), peanuts and tree nuts, other foods such as milk and seafood, and certain medicines – such as antibiotics.
A representative for the late star previously revealed that ‘doctors don’t know what caused the allergic reaction’ in a statement to People.
The former Food Network star, known for his Italian-influenced California cuisine, was treated for over a week at Queen of the Valley Medical Center in Napa before his death.
‘The doctors don’t know what caused the allergic reaction, and neither does the family. They may never know,’ the representative stated.
About Michael Chiarello Funeral
Michael Chiarello’s funeral arrangements will be private, and in lieu of flowers, his family is asking donations instead be made to Meals on Wheels.
When is Michael Chiarello funeral?
Michael Chiarello obituary was published by Legacy, but they did not mention the date or location of his funeral service.
His company, Gruppo Chiarello, also issued a press release mourning his death, but did not provide any details about the funeral arrangements.
It is possible that his family and friends have chosen to keep the funeral private, or that the information has not been made public yet.
Having said that, we are still following up on his death, we will update you as soon as we get important information about Michael Chiarello funeral service.
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