Anne Burrell, chef and Food Network television star, dies at 55

Straits Times

6 hours ago

Anne Burrell at her restaurant, Phil & Anne's Good Time Lounge, in New York on Aug 25, 2016. PHOTO: AN RONG XU/NYTIMES
NEW YORK – Anne Burrell, an American chef and television personality known for her kinetic swoop of blonde hair and an energy to match, died in Brooklyn, New York, on June 16. She was 55.
'Anne was a beloved wife, sister, daughter, stepmother and friend,' her family said in a statement, which did not mention a cause of death.
'Her smile lit up every room she entered. Anne's light radiated far beyond those she knew, touching millions across the world. Though she is no longer with us, her warmth, spirit and boundless love remain eternal.'
Burrell spent years working in Italian restaurants in Manhattan, including Savoy Restaurant and Felidia Ristorante, before ascending to household fame on US cable channel Food Network. She began as a sous chef on reality cooking series Iron Chef America (2005 to 2018) to American celebrity chef Mario Batali, but her distinctive swagger made her stand apart from even the effusive Batali, prompting the network to offer her a show of her own. That show, Secrets Of A Restaurant Chef premiered in 2008 and ran for nine seasons until 2012.
Burrell remained a staple of Food Network, hosting the hit show Worst Cooks In America (2010 to present) and appearing regularly on network favourites like Chopped (2009 to present) and Food Network Star (2005 to 2018).
In a statement, a spokesperson for Food Network said: 'Anne was a remarkable person and culinary talent – teaching, competing and always sharing the importance of food in her life and the joy that a delicious meal can bring.'
Burrell and her business partner Phil Casaceli also briefly ran Phil & Anne's Good Time Lounge, a Brooklyn restaurant that she described as 'funky, cool and homey'. It closed in 2018, less than a year after opening.
Anne W. Burrell was born on Sept 21, 1969, in Cazenovia, New York, and followed a love for the late American chef-author Julia Child all the way to Italy, where she attended the Italian Culinary Institute for Foreigners. When she returned to the US in 1998, she was hired to work at Felidia Ristorante, where she met the famed chef Lidia Bastianich.
American chef Claudette Zepeda, who competed alongside Burrell on Food Network show House Of Knives (2025), said the latter had her fair share of 'phoenix moments' in which she had to rise from dark times, including stepping out from underneath the shadow of Batali, who in 2017 was accused of sexually harassing women who worked for him.
'Coming out as her own human being and her own autonomous competitor was a huge moment for her,' Zepeda said. 'Everyone just put those two together and assumed there was complacency. Having to come out of that world and forge her own path as her own person - as Anne Burrell - wasn't easy for her.'
But Burrell had an intensity that made her a force to be reckoned with both on and off screen.
'She was the most competitive person ever,' said American chef and television personality Scott Conant, who was her co-star on Worst Cooks In America. 'I beat her on Worst Cooks once for a special. My team beat her team. She didn't talk to me for three months after that, she was so angry.'
That relentless spirit won her admiration from the young cooks who competed on her shows, Conant added. 'She was unapologetic and defined herself and told her story through food.'
Burrell is survived by her husband Stuart Claxton, a marketing executive whom she married in 2021; her mother Marlene Burrell; her younger sister Jane Burrell-Uzcategui; and her stepson Javier Claxton.
Burrell brought her perfectionism to two bestselling cookbooks, Cook Like A Rock Star: 125 Recipes, Lessons, And Culinary Secrets (2011) and Own Your Kitchen: Recipes To Inspire & Empower (2013).
Suzanne Lenzer, a food stylist, cookbook author and Burrell's collaborator on both cookbooks, said: 'She had a strong voice. And strong opinions.'
'She hated pepper,' Lenzer recalled. 'She said it was a spice like horseradish. Why would you put pepper on everything?'
Burrell made an exception for pasta carbonara. 'She didn't even like it in carbonara,' Lenzer added, 'but knew it had to be in there because it's traditional.' NYTIMES
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