Services Held Friday For Famed Chef Homaro Cantu

Services for famed Chef Homaro Cantu will be held Friday at St. Viator Parish in Chicago’s neighborhood of Irving Park.

Visitation will start at 11 a.m. at the church located at 4140 W. Addison, and the funeral will follow at 1 p.m.

Cantu was found dead Tuesday afternoon on the Northwest Side and an autopsy Wednesday ruled his death a suicide by hanging.

“I loved him dearly. It’s really terrible to see him go in this way. I’m going to miss him a lot,” said Trevor Rose-Hamblin, Cantu’s friend and business partner.

Rose-Hamblin said Cantu had planned to open a brewery in the building where he was found.
Cantu spent four years as a chef at Charlie Trotter’s famed Lincoln Park restaurant before opening the critically acclaimed Moto, which focused on inventive molecular gastronomy cuisine.

An emotional Cantu joined fellow famous chef alumni at Trotter’s memorial in 2013, including Graham Elliot, David LeFevre and Giuseppe Tentori.

And later, Cantu and other Trotter chef alums created the Trotter Project, a three-year capital campaign with dozens of former Trotter employees and family members.

Cantu served as president of the project aimed at mentoring high school and college students, and teaching young children how to cook. It also served to keep Trotter’s restaurant in his ownership as a flagship for the project.

As word of Cantu’s death spread Tuesday, many of his famous friends took to Twitter to express their condolences.

“Please everyone, send your thoughts/prayers to the family & loved ones of chef Homaro Cantu. A great friend, a horrible loss; speechless,” Graham Elliot tweeted.

“The whole city — it’s not going to be the same place without him,” said Rose-Hamblin.

In lieu of flowers, donations may be mailed to:

Cantu Children’s Trust
1555 Sherman Ave.
Box 177
Evanston, IL 60201

SUICIDE PREVENTION: If you know someone who needs help, you can contact the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline by calling 1-800-273-TALK (8255).

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