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Renowned Koreatown, LA, chef Jonathan Whitener has died at 36. The chef led the Here’s Looking at You restaurant and All Day Baby Diner in Silver Lake. The cause of death has not been released at the time of writing this article. Nonetheless, community members took to social media to pay tribute to the legendary saucier.
According to Eater, Jonathan Whitener died at his residence on February 7, 2024. Here’s Looking at You restaurant shared a tributary post through their official Instagram with a carousel of images of the chef. They wrote,
“His love was powerful and loyal, his love language was gifts and snacks (oftentimes snacks in the form of a gift), and he loved his corner seat 17 and the three Green Eggs we broke, like, immediately. He has made some of the best food we have ever tasted, some dishes we couldn’t even remember unless reminded, and the world is lucky to have even tasted a morsel.”
On February 8, the restaurant also shared on Instagram that they were closed “for family reasons.”
Jonathan Whitener’s skills have been critically acclaimed by the Los Angeles Times
According to Eater, the talented chef's Here’s Looking at You, which opened in 2016, has been critiqued by the Los Angeles Times food critic Jonathan Gold. Speaking about Jonathan Whitener’s craft, Gold said,
“strong flavors, jolts of acidity... and tendency to stuff hints of umami almost everywhere it might conceivably belong.”
Once the COVID-19 pandemic hit globally, the popular restaurant closed in 2020. In June 2021, they raised $85,000 through crowdsourcing to make ends meet. They subsequently reopened on January 9, 2022.
Jonathan Whitener is also the co-founder of the All Day Baby Diner. Speaking about what inspired him to open the same alongside restauranteur Lien Ta, Whitener said in an interview,
“I used to travel to the South as a kid with my dad in the summer, and the first thing I ever ate was a warm biscuit, and in the middle of it, a piece of fried chicken breast. It’s a food that gives me such a profound connection to an old member.”
Whitener was also the chef de cuisine at Animal. He was also employed at Century City’s Craft. According to his official Facebook page, the accomplished chef also gained experience at the Michelin-starred restaurant Mirazur.
The Huntington native graduated from the Culinary Institute of America in 2009.
“One of the greats of creativity and flavor”: Tributes pour in as the chef dies
Los Angeles community members were heartbroken by the latest news. Those who loved Here’s Looking at You took to their official Instagram account to express sadness over the announcement and praise Jonathan Whitener for his expertise. A few comments online read:
Details about the funeral arrangements were not made public when this article was written.
