NYC restaurateur Melba Wilson is heartbroken over the sudden death of celebrity chef Anne Burrell ... telling TMZ it’s left her and the entire culinary world gutted.
00:00I think this is a tough time for so many of us that knew Ann and that loved her.
00:06Totally unexpected. Spoke to her last week. So to wake up yesterday or to hear
00:13yesterday that she's no longer with us is devastating.
00:17Oh my god, how did she sound last week? What did you guys talk about?
00:21Ann was fine. We talked about karaoke.
00:24No way.
00:25We love to do karaoke and love games. She loved Backgammon. We always went out to dinner.
00:32Karaoke is just shocking. It's unbelievable to know that someone so vibrant and so full of life is no longer with us.
00:40And you said that she was at your birthday party just then?
00:43She was just at my birthday party a month and a half ago. Dancing. She loved to dance.
00:48So any type of music, Ann loved to dance. And she and Stuart were there, her husband,
00:53and had an amazing time. So this is devastating to us as an industry, to her family. I can't even imagine.
01:00Everyone's saying, was she sick? Did she hide a sickness? Did you know her to have anything or did she say anything?
01:08Ann never mentioned anything about being sick. That's why this is such a shock to us.
01:12She was healthy. She was vibrant. She was beautiful. People in the industry, we're devastated.
01:22If you saw Ann, Ann couldn't light up any room she walked into.
01:26Right.
01:27So to know that she went to sleep and just didn't wake up is heartbreaking.
01:3355. This is not supposed to happen to an healthy 55.
01:37What is Ann's legacy? Because I'm sure, you know, it's a lot to talk about for her work and her food.
01:44What's her legacy coming from another legend, you know?
01:47Her legacy is laughter. Ann always laughed. She always wanted to teach. She was a fierce competitor.
01:54The food and beverage industry is full of men and Ann would go toe-to-toe with the best of them.
02:02She always wanted to win. She was always very loving. She was always very giving.
02:07And how we met is, I was on the set of beat by the play and she walked up to me and said,
02:11if there's ever anything I can do, I love your restaurant. And a friendship was born.
02:16I remember for Thanksgiving, Ann teamed up with you and a few other people and you guys gave our turkeys.
02:23Yes.
02:24Tell us about that great memory.
02:25Ann was such a giver. So anytime, whether I asked her to come and speak to culinary students or to come with anything, anything.
02:34If she was in New York and she was available, she would be there. And I called her. I'm like, Ann, we want to do a turkey giveaway for Thanksgiving.
02:43So for God's love, we deliver. And the Strayvos Neyarkos Foundation, they donated the turkeys and it was 600 turkeys.
02:51And Ann was right there. She got there before I got there, actually, and got on the bus.
02:57And she got on the New York City bus and gave out turkeys. So, but that's the spirit of Ann Burrell, of Chef Ann Burrell.
03:06That's a big giver.
03:07She's a huge giver. Anytime you called her, she was there. So she's definitely going to be missing. I already miss her.
