Early reports indicate Michael died from an acute allergic reaction, but no word yet on what the cause was. I was not a follower of his TV career, but I have wonderful memories of the food he turned out at Tra Vigne.
Very sad.
I remember him from TV as one of the early folks who really cooked.
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I was shocked to read of it yesterday. DD1 made a recipe of his for a family dinner once. Garlic mashed potatoes that were the best I’ve ever had. LOTS of butter, but worth it for a splurge. Always thought he seemed like a nice guy too. RIP.
Whaaat? I hadn’t heard! Sad and scary!
He was the first famous chef I think of, at least since I moved to Northern California, because he seemed so close by. He had a company Napa Style that I sought (unsuccessfully) as a sponsor for a non-profit event. OTOH, his turn on Top-Chef Masters was not a good look. I don’t want to remember him that way, and will do some deeper looking.
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Oh no! I always enjoyed his recipes and TV programs (his turn on Top Chef Masters, as @shrinkrap noted, aside). Never got a chance to eat at his restaurant. Major, major bummer 
Condolences to his family.
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Anaphylaxis is a horrifying way to die, too. I feel for him and his loved ones.
I always mixed up Michael Chiarello with Michael Lomonaco (formerly ran “Windows on the World” in the WTC), though.
I don’t mean to take this off topic, but that’s going waay back, if I’m not mistaken! I enjoyed his show , and remember him saying something like “let’s get started”. I remember reading about his experience on 9/11.
From Wikipedia
" He is best known as the chef/director for Windows on the World, the restaurant located atop the North Tower of the World Trade Center. The restaurant was destroyed in the September 11 attacks, and all of the staff members who were working in the restaurant at the time of the attack died. Lomonaco survived because he was in the tower’s lobby during the attacks and was then evacuated from the building."
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I tend to mix up Michael Chiarello and Tom Colicchio - last names similar.
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Not if you’ve ever met them in person, in real life.
I’m sure I wouldn’t. I’ll have to google up a pic of Tom.
DO tell!
Well, without getting into too much detail, just physically they look different.
You would have to be seriously visually impaired to confuse the two based on looks alone.
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I haven’t seen MC on television in years, but enjoyed his FN show way back when. He cooked and entertained with style. That’s how I’ll remember him.
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From The San Francisco Chronicle
Does anyone know why they are not disclosing what he was allergic to?
Yes. Sad and scary.
Also here.
I met a woman when I was working at a hospital in Massachusetts, she said her granddaughter had died from anaphylactic shock after eating chili at a restaurant in Providence that had peanut butter as a “secret” ingredient. I’ve never forgotten that sad story. I just found this article about it https://www.nytimes.com/1986/03/02/us/prize-winning-chili-altered-after-athlete-s-death.html#:~:text=But%20the%20owners%20of%20the,Brown%20on%20Providence’s%20East%20Side.
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That is a sad story.
My neighbor’s little girl died after someone cut their grass. I was too young to remember, but my mother never forgot it. Then she told me, and I never forgot it!
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Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (or HIPAA)
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