Maggie Beer shares her fondest memories of the late MasterChef Australia judge Jock Zonfrillo after her daughter Saskia died at the same age
Maggie Beer has paid a moving tribute to Jock Zonfrillo six weeks after his tragic death.
The celebrity chef, 78, revealed some of the special memories she had of the late Masterchef judge.
“I love Jock. His energy. His passion for food, his ability to explain and teach,” she said.
“I knew Jock before he was on MasterChef. I knew what a great cook he was. His ideas, his knowledge of native ingredients and his tribute to them in what he cooked and his love for everything.’
Beer continues: ‘One of our chefs was his apprentice many, many years ago. So I know knowledge was deep and I just… He was hot. He was special.’
Maggie Beer, 78, has paid a touching tribute to Jock Zonfrillo six weeks after his tragic death. Both pictured
Days after Zonfrillo’s death was announced, the restaurateur said she was “terribly shocked” to learn of the 46-year-old’s passing after tragically losing her daughter at the same age.
“A truly unique creative chef with a big heart and big ideas will be so missed by many,” she wrote in part on her Instagram on May 4.
“My heart goes out to his family and friends.”
Maggie Beer’s daughter Saskia died unexpectedly in her sleep in February 2020. She too was 46 years old.
The celebrity chef appeared on Stellar’s podcast Something To Talk About, where she opened up about some of the special memories she had of the late Masterchef judge. “I love Jock. His energy. His passion for food, his ability to explain and teach,” she said
Her cause of death was not made public.
Zonfrillo’s family and friends emotionally left a chapel in Sydney on Saturday, May 13, as they said goodbye to the celebrity chef.
The Masterchef judge, who died on April 30 at the age of 46, was buried in a private funeral surrounded by 200 family and friends.
Zonfrillo died in his hotel room at Zagame’s House on Lygon Street in Carlton, Melbourne and was found by police around 2am on Monday 1 May – the same day Channel Ten was set to premiere the fifteenth season of MasterChef Australia.
Police were responding to a welfare check requested by his wife, who was in Italy with their son and daughter at the time.
Zonfrillo died on April 30 in his hotel room at Zagame’s House on Lygon Street in Carlton, Melbourne.
The media personality was slated for several publicity assignments for season 15 of MasterChef when he passed away suddenly.
Daily Mail Australia can reveal that when police entered the hotel room to conduct a welfare check, officers believed Zonfrillo had died of natural causes and found nothing to suggest otherwise.
No drug paraphernalia were also found in the hotel room, sources said.
Zonfrillo is survived by his third wife, Lauren Fried, and his four children: adult daughters Ava and Sophia, from his first two marriages, and six-year-old Alfie and two-year-old Isla, with Fried.
Zonfrillo is survived by his third wife, Lauren Fried, and his four children: adult daughters Ava and Sophia, from his first two marriages, and six-year-old Alfie and two-year-old Isla, with Fried