EXCLUSIVE Anne Burrell's friend breaks silence on 'shock and sudden' death... claiming chef was in 'decent shape'
The well-known TV chef was found 'unconscious and unresponsive' when law enforcement responded to a call 7.50 am on June 17.
The New York Fire Department confirmed to Daily Mail that they were responding to a report of a cardiac arrest.
Her cause of death is still being investigated by the Office of Chief Medical Examiner.
At 55 years old, chef Elizabeth Falkner claimed that her friend was in 'pretty decent shape' when she last saw her on June 9 at dinner in New York City.
In an exclusive interview with Daily Mail, Falkner, 59, revealed, 'I think Anne looks like she's in pretty decent shape these days, so it's kind of surprising to me.'
Not being able to comment specifically on any health issues, if any, she might've battled before her death, she did find her passing 'so sudden and shocking.'
'I know it is very personal to me what happened, and I can't believe somebody even younger than me has just passed away. It's close to home for all of us,' she said.
'The culinary family is like family, so this hurts a lot of us. We just all feel it.'
The shock comes from seeing her a few days ago at an intimate dinner she hosted - which she of course was the chef for the 'fun night' - at Soho House on June 9.
'I've seen [her] over all these years, not just on television competitions and shows, but at different parties and events and stuff, and we've always been friendly.
'But just in the last month we've been texting. I said, "Come to my dinner at Soho House, it'll be great to see you." And she brought her husband and we just had such a good time,' she shared about how the famous chefs reconnected.
'It was just so sweet. So this is just really so sudden and shocking.'
Burrell even texted her the following day on June 10 to let her know that she and her husband, Stuart Claxton, had a great time.
'She's like, "Thanks so much for inviting us. It was a truly lovely time and very delicious. Please send me some pics so I can post."
Falkner paid tribute to Anne on her Instagram after hearing about the shocking news
'And I said, "It was so great to see you, Anne."'
The pals even made a pact to 'talk more often.'
'We were like, "Let's just make a point of talking and texting more often,"' Falkner shared, while noting that she is 'very grateful' to have had a special night with the beloved chef and other guests last week.
'I'm just bummed. I feel like [our friendship] just got cut really short fast,' she added.
The Worst Cooks in America alum spoke highly about being a mother.
'When she came to the dinner at Soho House, she said that she was very much enjoying being a stepmother,' Falkner said, referring to the star's stepson Javier, 20.
'And her husband's so sweet. She just seemed to be in such a good place. That's the best way for me to describe it. Because being a chef and being a television personality is two major full-time jobs, but enjoying your life outside of that can be challenging. And I think she was definitely enjoying her life outside of that whole world of the networks and all that stuff.'
Burrell spoke exclusively with Daily Mail back in April about marital bliss. Her and Stuart got married in 2021 after meeting on a dating app in 2018.
'October will be four years,' she said at the City Harvest gala. 'It seems like it's been four minutes. I don't know if it's a honeymoon [phase], but I feel like it's settled into married life days which I really enjoy.'
Falkner told Daily Mail, 'I'm just bummed. I feel like [our friendship] just got cut really short fast' (pictured is an exclusive photo of Falkner with her pal at Burrell's former Brooklyn restaurant, Phil And Anne's Good Time Lounge, shared with Daily Mail)
Falkner, who appeared on cooking shows like Iron Chef and Top Chef, recalled meeting Burrell's husband before they got married in 2021.
'I randomly saw her in Rome outside of a restaurant, and I was like, "Oh my God, that's Anne Burrell walking by!" And we said hey and stuff,' Falkner revealed, noting that she and Stuart were on a 'pre-wedding trip.'
Describing her passing 'really unfortunate,' 'so sad,' 'unexpected' and even 'tragic,' Falkner believes Burrell's death is a huge loss to the restaurant community since everyone involved is 'another kind of family.'
Falkner, herself, said that being a chef is a 'highly stressful job,' but it was something that Burrell mastered throughout her career.
'The thing about Anne Burrell is she wasn't only a TV chef, she was a really good, really good cook, really good chef. She educated a lot of people,' the James Beard Foundation's board of trustees member told Daily Mail.
'I don't even know how she had the patience to do Worst Cooks in America, because I think that would be a challenging show to do patience wise. But she was the real deal. She could cook a lot. She had mad skills. It was always fun watching her cook. I told her I loved watching her on House of Knives.'
She added, 'She's one of those people that's kind of intimidating and certainly hardcore as chefs can be. I mean, you kind of have to be that way. It's the only way to teach people how to deal with ingredients and not to mess it up all the time. But she was definitely very sweet... She had a certain kind of sparkle.'
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