How old is charlie trotter

He was named the country's Outstanding Chef by James Beard Foundation in ; in , Wine Spectator magazine called Trotter's the best restaurant in the nation.

More awards and accolades followed, including a Beard Award for Outstanding Service; at the time, Trotter called it the award he was most proud to receive, as it represented "a team award. He was also a man of uncommon generosity, creating the Charlie Trotter Education Foundation to provide scholarships for culinary students. Master Sommelier Larry Stone who served as Trotter's Sommelier in the late 80s and early 90s returned to work with him last year to close up his restaurant.

Stone, who is now with the Quintessa Winery in Napa Valley, said Trotter and his family were aware that Trotter had a brain aneurysm and Trotter told Stone that he was resigned to it. It was inoperable and it was not something that could be repaired, it was deep inside the brain," Stone said.

As a result of his medical condition he was told by doctors that he should not be flying, should not be in high altitudes and should not exert himself because of the pressure on his brain. He said a number of years ago he went to the Mayo Clinic after he was first having dizzy spells and had collapsed.

I don't think it made him very happy to know that he had a condition that would incapacitate him in some way," said Stone. He never wanted anything to interfere with his craft. He was driven by his love of what he did and a desire to be better and better at it. That's what drove him from the very beginning. It's a huge loss, not just personally, but for the culinary world. The news shocked many in the restaurant world, including L. He had a very acute sense of attention to detail and he saw things that most people didn't see.

All of us who worked for him are better chefs because we came out of that kitchen. He was He was taken to Northwestern Memorial Hospital, where he was pronounced dead. An autopsy is scheduled for Wednesday. All of us who worked for him are better chefs because we came out of that kitchen. Although known as a stern taskmaster with a hair-trigger temper, Trotter also had a reputation for spontaneous bursts of generosity toward employees as well as philanthropic efforts.

The past year had been difficult for Trotter, who said he was taking a sabbatical from the restaurant business. In August, he was criticized for having blown up at a group of high school art students who were using the restaurant space as a gallery.

Last December, he pulled the plug on the public auction of some of the contents of his restaurant when bids did not meet his expectations. Trotter rushed home in a cab. She recalled screaming hysterically as emergency personnel held her back in the foyer, and again outside as they wheeled him on a stretcher into the ambulance.

He just looked so peaceful," she said. Trotter can't help but draw parallels between his death and her mother's. Her mother also had high blood pressure and died of a stroke on Halloween, and it was a young Rochelle who found her.

Trotter has wasted little time since her husband's death. She took inventory and put into storage his books and memorabilia, and started talking to potential new board members for the foundation. She expects to have the new board in place by February. And I haven't stopped. I'm just grateful that he was very specific in what he wanted," she said. Fundraising for the foundation will take the form of monthly events held across the country, with two in the works for outside of the United States.

The first event, a dinner prepared by his friend and acclaimed chef David Bouley, took place last week at the James Beard House in New York. The fundraisers will culminate in a dinner in November in Chicago. Trotter continues to run marathons; her next race is in March in Little Rock, Ark. Trotter had been on medication to control seizures, according to a statement released to various media outlets by his widow, Rochelle Trotter. In her statement Friday, she said her husband had been cleared to fly to Wyoming for a culinary conference last weekend.

The autopsy indicates that his travel is not connected to his death. This is obviously a difficult time as we are still processing our grief. As his family and I focus upon putting Charlie's body to rest, we hope that this will settle the inaccuracies that have been reported and we can move forward in honoring Charlie's life on Monday. We ask for your patience and continued respect of our privacy.