Anne Burrell’s tragic passing at 55 has shaken the culinary world, and now, a detailed good friend is opening up concerning the non-public struggles she confronted behind the scenes.
Movie star chef Duff Goldman, one in every of Burrell’s longtime Food Network colleagues, revealed that regardless of her upbeat public picture, Anne had been quietly coping with emotional challenges.
His remarks come as new particulars emerge concerning the beloved chef’s remaining days, including depth to the heartbreak surrounding her premature dying.
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Duff Goldman Pays Tribute To Anne Burrell
Goldman has make clear the non-public ache Anne Burrell saved hidden earlier than her tragic finish.
On Thursday, June 19, the 50-year-old took to Instagram with an image of himself and the late chef, alongside a prolonged and emotional caption.
“I’ve written and re-written this submit so many occasions up to now 24 hours, and I simply do not know what to say,” he started.
Goldman revealed that Burrell was going via a tricky time again then, and he baked her a cake to elevate her spirits. The phrases inscribed on the cake learn, “Do not let the b*st*rds win.” He famous that she “by no means did.”
The Meals Community star recalled their complicated relationship and talked about how their final dialog earlier than drifting aside was a passionate debate about catfish.
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“I imagine the phrases’ trash fish,’ ‘tastes like mud,’ and ‘cake boy’ had been used, haha,” he wrote.
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Duff Goldman Recollects His Reconnection With Anne Burrell
Goldman admitted he by no means understood why they misplaced contact however all the time hoped Burrell was blissful.
The pastry chef recounted an sudden second a few years in the past when he bumped into her at a gala in New York Metropolis.
“I used to be at a gala in NYC with my spouse and my daughter, and I took Josephine out to the foyer to present her a break from sitting at a desk listening to speeches. We had been enjoying with the marble columns, and as we rounded one, we noticed Anne,” Goldman shared.
The TV character revealed that he and Burrell chatted after years of not talking. Although he did not share the specifics of their dialog, Goldman mentioned it “left my coronary heart lifted and full of sunshine,” making it clear the “Secrets and techniques of a Restaurant Chef” star had discovered happiness and love.
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Duff Goldman Says His Final Interplay With Burrell Eased The Ache Of Her Loss of life

Goldman continued, describing Anne Burrell as somebody who was “robust as they arrive,” however beneath her armor, there was a “depth of compassion and kindness that was completely lovely.”
He revealed that the “love and tranquility” the TV host seemingly discovered earlier than her demise, alongside the real smile at him and his daughter on the foyer that day, introduced him consolation and helped soften the ache of her loss.
Ending his tribute, Goldman wrote, “Anne, wherever you’re I hope they’ve gradual shifting rivers as a result of once I get there, we’ll get a few rods, a pint of rooster livers, and a sixer and I am going to educate you easy methods to catch and prepare dinner one of the best catfish you ever had.”
He signed off tenderly, “Relaxation up, chef.”
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Particulars Of Burrell’s Loss of life

Anne Burrell was discovered lifeless in her Brooklyn house on the morning of June 17, 2025. Her husband, Stuart Claxton, found her unresponsive within the bathe and referred to as 911 to report a cardiac arrest.
Emergency medical providers arrived and pronounced her lifeless on the scene at roughly 7:50 a.m.
The medical expert has not but launched an official explanation for dying, and no foul play has been confirmed.
Authorities are persevering with to analyze the circumstances, together with the presence of the tablets, as a part of a routine inquiry in such instances.
Anne Burrell Was In Good Form Earlier than Her Demise
Burrell’s dying shocked many, together with her good friend, Elizabeth Falkner, who revealed the chef was in respectable form.
Talking to the Daily Mail, Falkner acknowledged, “I feel Anne appears to be like like she’s in fairly respectable form today, so it is type of stunning to me. It is simply actually so sudden and surprising.”
Falkner went on to recall the final time she noticed Burrell, which was every week earlier than her demise at an intimate feast she hosted.
“I mentioned, ‘Come to my dinner at Soho Home, it will be nice to see you.’ And he or she introduced her husband, and we simply had such an excellent time,” she recalled. “It was simply so candy.”
Following the dinner, Falkner mentioned she and Burrell had determined to remain in contact continuously.
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“We had been like, ‘Let’s simply make some extent of speaking and texting extra typically,'” Falkner shared. “I am very grateful to have had that particular night time. I really feel like [our friendship] simply bought reduce actually quick quick.”