A New York City chef who was well on his way to creating a restaurant empire after receiving financial backing from NBA star LeBron James has passed away.
Restaurant owner and renowned chef James Kent died over the weekend, according to the New York Times.
Kent, who founded the Saga and Crown Shy restraint, which both earned the highly sought-after Michelin stars, died at 45.
Before his sudden death, Kent had plans to create a restaurant empire with a newly fired chicken sandwich restaurant aiming to rival Shake Shack.
His new restaurant chain received significant financial backing from LRMR Ventures, an investment firm founded by Lakers star LeBron James.
Kelly Kent, the wife of James Kent, shared her husband died of a heart attack.
Details regarding what caused Kent’s heart attack have been withheld from the public at this time.
Per The Daily Beast:
New York City restaurant mogul James Kent, whose empire was on the cusp of national expansion thanks to backing by LeBron James’ investment firm, died over the weekend, his hospitality group announced on Instagram, along with a message to “celebrate Father’s Day with your loved ones.” He was 45.
Kent, whose two restaurants Crown Shy and Saga earned one and two Michelin stars respectively, spoke often about working in his uncle’s restaurant as a “young kid.” His culinary career was supercharged at the age of 14 when he was given a job in the kitchen of David Bouley’s eponymously named Bouley in TriBeCa. Kent was first introduced to the celebrity chef in 1993 after Bouley moved into his family’s building in lower Manhattan and his mother made him knock on the chef’s door, according to a New York Times obituary.
He went on to work for a number of buzzy fine-dining establishments, including Jean-Georges, Babbo, and Eleven Madison Park, where he first made a name for himself—as well as NoMad, where he served as executive chef.
Before his death, Kent was planning to expand his empire nationally with a fried chicken sandwich restaurant that he hoped would rival fast-casual phenomena like Shake Shack—and he seemed poised to execute his vision with a timely investment from LRMR Ventures, which is run by LeBron James and his business partner Maverick Carter, the Times reported.