Anoosh Shariat, Louisville chef behind Anoosh Bistro, Noosh Nosh, dies

The Louisville food community has lost one of its most iconic chefs and champions.

Chef Anoosh Shariat, a pioneer of the local culinary scene known for his charity work, contagious smile, and creativity on the plate, died on Wednesday, following a multi-year battle with cancer. He was 67.

Among a flood of social media messages honoring Shariat, the nonprofit Apron Inc. was one of the first to post about the chef’s passing on Facebook. Shariat played a big role in starting the organization, which provides temporary and limited financial relief to professional food and beverage workers in need in the Louisville area.

“It is with great sadness, but so much love that we celebrate the legendary life of Chef Anoosh Shariat, whom we lost today,” read the post.

Gary Fox, president of Apron Inc., learned of Sharati’s passing early Wednesday, he told the Courier Journal.

Need a break? Play the USA TODAY Daily Crossword Puzzle.

The two met about 13 years ago, he said. Fox remembers Shariat as a gifted chef at his restaurants, including Anoosh Bistro and Noosh Nosh, as well as a leader, ready to generously guide young chefs and celebrate other restaurants.

“He’s one of the people that managed to be successful, while still being caring and nurturing,” Fox said. “He’s one of the absolute all-time good guys.”

Apron Inc. recently honored the chef with its top award during an annual fundraiser.

A video about Shariat played during the ceremony, offering a peek into the legendary chef’s roots and rise in the food scene.

Shariat was born in 1957 in Iran. As a teenager, he left his hometown to attend high school in Germany, where his brother helped him get a job at the school cafeteria. The work of separating silverware, his first job and introduction to the restaurant industry, would help him learn the language. That was the idea, anyway.

That’s where his passion for cooking began, Shariat shared in the video posted on YouTube.

He then moved to Dallas, where Shariat worked hard at fine-tuning his cooking chops by working multiple jobs at a time.

This caught the eye of developer Charles Osborn, also the founder of Norton Commons, who brought Shariat to Louisville to serve as head chef of Remington’s, a fine-dining restaurant.

In the early 1990s, the head chef opened his own place, called Shariat’s Restaurant.

He opened Anoosh Bistro in 2013 and the nearby Noosh Nosh followed.

More:Louisville chef Anoosh Shariat has died. A look back at 7 of his recipes from our archives

It was around this time that chefs like Dallas McGarity were opening upscale restaurants, bringing attention to Louisville's food scene.

“He helped put Louisville on the national food scene and always wanted great things for everyone,” McGarity, a James Beard Award semifinalist who owns The Fat Lamb, told the Courier Journal.

After hearing of Shariat’s passing, McGarity recalled Shariat’s “kindness and wisdom.”

“Louisville lost one of the best humans today,” he told the Courier Journal. “(His) legacy will live on through the food community he cherished and through all the lives he touched. I can only hope to be as influential and loved as he was.”

Shariat retired from the restaurant business in April. Anoosh Bistro was sold to chef Daniel Davidson, formerly of Log Still Distillery and Churchill Downs, and is now a concept called äta Restaurant.

Throughout his career, Shariat continued to host and support fundraisers for Apron Inc.

Of the many things making Shariat an "inspiration," this sticks out to JC Phelps, a local food blogger who runs the site JCP Eats and knows Shariat well.

“He radiated positivity through his food, his life, and his career,” Phelps told the Courier Journal. “He was just a joy. He continued to be a beacon for food, a beacon for charity, and I know that inspired many people, myself included."

At the ceremony in September with around 200 people in attendance, Fox said it felt like an “honest and loving farewell.”

“So many people got to hug him and tell him they loved him,” Fox said.

And Shariat still wore that “big smile.”

As Fox said, he exemplified his motto, “Eat Well. Love Life.”

“He made sure everyone ate really well,” he said. “And he really loved life.”

Shariat is survived by his wife, Paula Barmore, three daughters, one son, one stepson, and numerous grandkids.

Reach food and dining reporter Amanda Hancock at [email protected].