Detroit Chef And Restaurant Owner Max Hardy Dead At 40

Prominent chef Max Hardy has suddenly died at the age of 40.

According to MLive, the Detroit native passed away on March 4. His cause of death was not immediately revealed.

The DRLA has lost one of its founding members, Detroit’s culinary scene lost an important leader in its renaissance, and we have all lost a generous soul who worked so hard to make Detroit a better, fairer place to be. pic.twitter.com/q0OO10xfW6

— Detroit Restaurant & Lodging Assoc. (@DetroitRLA) March 5, 2024

“We have lost one of the most celebrated and promising Black chefs from Detroit,” Hardy’s publicist, David Rudolph, said in a written statement to MLive.

“He will be remembered for his work in the community as an advocate to end childhood food insecurity, feeding the un-homed during the pandemic with Too Many Cooks in the Kitchen for Good, his work with DPSCD high school culinary students, and recently, the coming together of 30 Black male chefs in celebration of Black History Month (Black Excellence Culinary Symphony).”

The Detroit Free Press reported that Hardy owned COOP Caribbean Fusion, which is located inside the Detroit Shipping Co.; Jed’s Detroit, a pizza and wings franchise on Seven Mile Road in Detroit; and River Bistro in northwest Detroit, which is now closed.

In recent years, Hardy returned home to Detroit after spending 20 years in Miami and New York City, opening River Bistro in 2017. For five years, he was a personal chef to former NBA player Amar’e Stoudemire. Hardy was planning on opening three restaurants within a year in Detroit.

He released his first cookbook, Cooking with Amar’e: 100 Easy Recipes for Pros and Rookies in the Kitchen in 2014. He also appeared as a contestant on Food Network’s Chopped series.

According to The Detroit News, Hardy started a nonprofit organization, One Chef Can 86 Hunger, and worked with various groups, including the Horatio Williams Foundation, the I AM Hope Foundation, and Too Many Cooks in the Kitchen For Good.

The popular chef is survived by his two daughters.

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