Portland’s culinary scene devastated by death of chef Naomi Pomeroy

Chef Naomi Pomeroy reportedly drowned in a floating accident on the Willamette River near Corvallis over the weekend. She was 49.

As Portland Monthly According to reports this afternoon, Pomeroy was tubing on the river with her husband, Kyle Linden Webster, when they were capsized in fast-moving currents. Webster managed to reach shore. But despite the efforts of search and rescue teams, Pomeroy’s body has not been found.

The Benton County Sheriff’s Office told Eugene’s KEZI 9 that the woman who fell underwater Saturday night was not wearing a life jacket.

Reactions from the Portland and beyond food scene are emerging on social media.

U.S. Rep. Earl Blumenauer (D-Ore.) issued the following statement: “What a loss. Naomi was not only a fabulous chef and entrepreneur, but an extraordinary human being. Her impact extended far beyond Portland, helping to establish our leadership and reputation for culinary excellence. She will be greatly missed.”

“It’s awful,” Courtney Taylor-Taylor said of the Dandy Warhols on X.

“She asked me for nocino for an ice cream flavor last month and I was about to tell her my nuts were ready when I found out this morning,” said Jim Dixon, WW contributor and owner of Wellspent Market, on X.

Pomeroy, a Corvallis native, started an underground supper club out of her northeast Portland bungalow called “Family Supper” in the early 2000s. She was best known for Beast, a 24-seat restaurant with communal tables offering six-course menus. Fixed price meal which was open from 2007 to 2020. In 2011, she appeared as a contestant on The best chefs.

Pomeroy won the 2014 James Beard Award for Best Chef in the Pacific Northwest.

This spring, she opened Cornet Custard, an ice cream shop on Southeast Division Street, with her longtime pastry chef, Mika Paredes. She planned to open a new restaurant this fall in the adjacent space, the former Woodsman Tavern.