“Top Chef”’s Naomi Pomeroy Remembered by Family at Memorial After Fatal Inner Tube Accident: ‘She Was Our Protector’

'Top Chef Masters' alum Naomi Pomeroy died at age 49 on July 13 after drowning on the Willamette River in Oregon

Friends and family gathered to eulogize chef Naomi Pomeroy at a memorial service on Monday, Aug. 12, one month after she died in an inner tube accident.

The Top Chef Masters alum — who is survived by her husband Kyle Webster and their daughter August, 23 — died at age 49 on July 13 after drowning on the Willamette River in Oregon.

Pomeroy’s loved ones gathered under St. John’s Bridge at Cathedral Park in Portland to speak and eat in her honor, according to video from TV station KOIN 6.

“She was our protector, our guide, our food guide,” Naomi’s father, Toby Pomeroy, said at the memorial. “Everything was remarkably fulfilled.”

Guests were well-fed at the ceremony. Pastries topped with berries and edible flowers, deviled eggs and baskets of assorted breads were just a few items available during the service.

“All of these greens and vegetables are straight from Naomi’s garden,” a note read on the large spread of food.

Culinary peers, mentors and mentees attended the memorial. Madeline Cook, who worked with Naomi at Ripe Cooperative, told KOIN 6 of Naomi's “spirit.”

“I learned how to be fiercely independent and honest, not just in food techniques, but in my personal life,” said Cook.

Naomi drowned while tubing with her husband and one other individual on July 13. Her husband and friend survived. They were not wearing a life jackets at the time.

Naomi was presumed dead after search and rescue teams found her body, but could not recover her. Her body was found on Wednesday, July 17.

Related: Padma Lakshmi, Gail Simmons Pay Tribute to Naomi Pomeroy, Top Chef Contestant Who Drowned in Tube Accident

On Tuesday, July 16, Webster spoke with the New York Times, saying a branch in the water led to the deadly incident. While their two tubes and a paddle board were tied up, the branch knocked them into the water with a strong current.

Naomi made her mark on the Portland food scene over the last 25 years. She opened Ripe Catering in 1999 at age 24. Shortly afterward, she launched an underground supper club called Family Supper before “going legit” and opening Gotham Coffee Shop in 2002, Clarklewis in 2004 and Gotham Tavern in 2005, according to her cookbook author bio.

After those ventures closed or were sold, she opened up her buzzy and intimate restaurant Beast in 2007. In 2013, she and Webster opened up Expatriate, a cocktail bar. In 2020, Beast transformed into Ripe Cooperative, a marketplace and restaurant selling meal boxes.

Just this June, Naomi opened Cornet Custard, which started as a frozen custard pop-up in her flower shop Colibri. She also announced her fourth year of Garden Party, a seasonal restaurant only open in the summer.

Naomi was also a cookbook author and published Taste & Technique in 2016. She appeared on cooking competition shows like Top Chef Masters in 2011 as a contestant and later as a judge.

Related: Wally Amos, Founder of Famous Amos Cookies, Dies at 88

She was recognized by outlets like Bon Appètit and Food & Wine as a chef to watch. In 2014, she won a James Beard Award for Best Chef Pacific Northwest.

Former Top Chef host and judge Padma Lakshmi gave a tribute to Naomi on social media after her death.

"I was blessed to get to know this inspiring woman over the years. My condolences to her loved ones; what an incredible loss to our community," Lakshmi wrote in an Instagram post.

Top Chef judge Gail Simmons also paid her respects to her on Instagram.

"Heartbroken doesn’t cut it," Simmons wrote. "I first met Naomi Pomeroy the night she won her @foodandwine Best New Chef award in 2009. In fact, the internet reminded me today that I was the one who handed it to her. Fifteen years and countless laughs, texts and meals later I’m just as in awe of her cooking talent, generosity, sharp wit and general brilliance as I was back then."

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