Naomi Pomeroy, a prominent chef and past participant on “Top Chef Masters,” has passed away at 49 years old due to a river tubing accident on the Willamette River, near Corvallis, Oregon. The accident took place on July 13, 2024, and her friends confirmed her demise on the following Monday. Her body was retrieved from the river on Wednesday by passing canoers who noticed it in the water.
Pomeroy, along with her spouse, Kyle Linden Webster, and another companion were floating down the river when their tubes and a paddleboard, which they had tied together, got entangled with an underwater tree. Pomeroy, who lacked a life jacket, was pulled underwater due to a paddleboard leash and did not reappear. Despite using sonar, underwater cameras, and drones, the recovery of her body was hindered by strong currents and underwater debris, as reported by the Benton County Sheriff’s Office and the Corvallis Fire Department.
The distinguished chef was widely recognized for her Portland, Oregon-based restaurant, Beast. This establishment significantly boosted Portland’s reputation in the culinary world. Beast was among the early pioneers of the city’s food circuit, garnering Pomeroy several accolades, including the James Beard Award for Best Chef in the Pacific Northwest in 2014. Her innovative cooking methodologies and dedication to seasonal ingredients earned her a loyal fan base.
Congressman Earl Blumenauer, who had previously worked with Pomeroy to aid independent eateries during the COVID-19 pandemic, praised her as “a fabulous chef and entrepreneur and an amazing human being whose impact extended far beyond Portland. She helped establish our leadership and reputation for food excellence.” Following her demise, accolades poured in from various parts of the culinary sphere.
Several fellow chefs, including Tom Colicchio, Dominique Crenn, Andrew Zimmern, and Amanda Freitag, paid tribute to Pomeroy. “She was a force to be reckoned with. I was always inspired by her extreme creativity & commitment to her craft,” Freitag noted. “She was always ahead of the curve and stood strong for everything she believed about the proper way to feed people good food & support her culinary community.”
Born in Corvallis, Oregon in 1974, Pomeroy honed her culinary abilities without any formal training. She began her career by drawing inspiration from other chefs on television and crafted her first recipe at four years old. In 2007, she launched Beast in Portland, a restaurant famed for its communal dining approach and fixed-price menus. Pomeroy also co-established Gotham Tavern and Gotham Coffee Shop with Michael Hebb.
Just a fortnight before her tragic accident, Pomeroy announced the initiation of a new dining series, Garden Party. This series showcased a vegetarian-friendly menu centered around seasonal ingredients from Pomeroy’s garden. In her last Instagram post, she expressed her eagerness to cook for her guests again, stating, “See you all again soon! I can’t wait to cook with you again.”
Aside from her restaurants, Pomeroy’s influence reached further. She featured on “Top Chef Masters” in 2011, earning broad recognition for her culinary talents. In 2014, Food & Wine hailed her as one of the Best New Chefs, and Marie Claire included her in their list of 18 Most Powerful Women in Business.
Her contributions to Portland’s food industry were significant. Beast, which shut down in 2020 due to the pandemic, was converted into Ripe Cooperative, a marketplace that offered meal boxes for home cooking until its closure in 2022. She recently inaugurated a permanent location for her custard shop, Cornet Custard, and was in the process of opening a new restaurant in the former Woodsman Tavern space.
The community she served and inspired mourns her passing. Through the numerous chefs and food enthusiasts she influenced and the innovative culinary paths she charted, Pomeroy’s legacy will continue to thrive.
