Rose Gray, the co-founder of River Cafe died today (Sunday 28 February). Rose, who had twice undergone treatment for breast cancer, founded the River Cafe with Ruth Rogers (pictured here to the left of Rose) back in 1987. It quickly leapt from being the work canteen for Ruth's husband, architect Richard Rogers, to one of those restaurants which has an impact on the nation's cooking habits. Which self-respecting foodie in the nineties didn't have a copy of the River Cafe Cookbook, or had come undone in trying to replicate their legendary Chocolate Nemesis?
Announcing the news on Twitter, food critic Jay Rayner said Gray was 'a complicated woman who, with Ruthie Rogers, had a huge impact on British restaurants.'
For London restaurant-goers who associated Gray with the elegance of the River Cafe and the Italian lifestyle it espoused, it may be a surprise to learn that her first professional appointment was in the kitchens at Nell's Club in new York (yes that's the same Little Nell as in the Rocky Horror Show). She teamed up with Ruth Rogers to open the River Cafe in 1987 where they trained up a new generation of British chefs, most notably Jamie Oliver and Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall, but also Sam and Sam Clark of Moro, Theo Randall, and Arthur Potts-Dawson of Acorn House.
In a tribute to Gray, Jamie Oliver said: 'Without question the world has lost one of the most important chefs of our times, she will be sorely missed.'
The last few years had certainly been eventful ones for the River Cafe. In 2008, just weeks after a fire closed the restaurant, the Cafe slipped out of the San Pellegrino World's 50 Best Restaurant List. Undaunted, Gray and Rogers took the opportunity to give the restaurant a major revamp and six months later its reopening revealed that their loyal customers hadn't deserted them. Just last year, Gray and Rogers revealed their plans to open a second River Cafe restaurant somewhere in London and both Rose and Ruth were awarded MBEs in this year's New Year's Honours list.
The River Cafe will be closed on Monday 1 March 2010 as a mark of respect.
