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On Monday, December 6, renowned chef Jack Riebel passed away at 55. Full name John Percy Riebel, he was formerly the executive chef at The Lexington. He was still associated as one of the co-owners even after leaving Lexington Restaurant Group LLC.
As per a memorial post from his alma mater, Saint Paul College, Jack Riebel began his journey as a chef almost 40 years ago in the Twin Cities.
The Minnesota native was known for helping establish multiple restaurants, including Butcher & the Boar, Il Foro, Half-Time Rec, The Dakota, La Belle Vie, and Goodfellows.
Chef Jack Riebel's contributions to uplifting the culinary aspects of the Twin Cities are best explored by MPS Mags' Stephanie March.
In an obitual post, she wrote:
"I want you to understand that no one had an impact on our local food scene like chef Jack did because he had a different kind of power."
What was the cause of influential chef Jack Riebel's death?
In June 2019, Chef Jack Riebel was diagnosed with neuroendocrine cancer. This type of rare cancer also claimed the lives of Apple co-founder Steve Jobs (in 2011) and singer Aretha Franklin (in 2018).
As per a GoFundMe page set up by the late chef's friend, Jason DeRusha, Jack Riebel finished his second round of chemotherapy in March 2021. Last year, Jack also had four treatment procedures for his cancer.
In an older update on the GoFundMe page, Jack Riebel was quoted as saying:
"Rest is required to fight cancer. Rest is a hard concept for me, as chefs don't quit when they are tired, they quit when the job is done, and I am not done yet."
What is Chef Jack Riebel's backstory?
As per Saint Paul College, Jack found his passion for the culinary arts in his early teenage years. He reportedly dropped out of high school at 15 and worked as a cook at 16. From 1986 to 1987, Jack attended St Paul Technical Vocational Institute's culinary department, receiving culinary and chef training.
At 19, Chef Jack Riebel joined Radisson Plaza in Minneapolis as a preparatory cook, after which he was hired as the line cook in Goodfellow's. As a head chef, Jack worked with La Belle Vie, Dakota Jazz Club, and his own ventures like The Lexington and Butcher & the Boar.
In a statement, his wife Kathryne Cramer said:
"We never had kids, but he had hundreds of kids at his restaurants. He was an innate teacher. He was always teaching. He made everybody feel special. That was his gift."
Chef Jack's alma mater, St Paul's Technical Vocational Institute, has now started a scholarship in his memory to help culinary arts students. The college has also created a fundraiser for the scholarship fund.
Jack was also a finalist for the James Beard Award while associated with Butcher & the Boar.
