Melbourne restaurateur Kevin Donovan dies in his sleep
Well-known Melbourne restaurateur Kevin Donovan has died at the age of 68.
Donovan, co-founder of the famous Donovans restaurant on St Kilda’s waterfront, died peacefully in his sleep on Tuesday, leaving behind his wife Gail.
“Gail cooked him a delicious dinner,” said Nick Parkhouse, the restaurant’s new owner.
“His last meal was sharing something incredible with Gail, which was a wonderful send-off for him.”
Donovan had been battling an undiagnosed condition for the past five years, suffering from aneurysms, Parkinson’s-like symptoms and reduced lung function.
American-born restaurateur Kevin Donovan (pictured with his wife Gail) died in his sleep on Tuesday
The Melbourne couple owned the famous Donovans restaurant (above) in St Kilda for 26 years
The Donovan couple opened their restaurant in 1997 and it grew into one of Melbourne’s best-loved eateries.
However, after serving more than 1.5 million customers in 26 years, they sold Donovans on August 31.
“Kev has been ill for five years and has not been able to work at the restaurant for at least three years,” Ms. Donovan said. Good food at the time.
“It’s time for me to stay home, not to take care of Kev, because I don’t plan to, but because we want to have time to have a little more fun.”
She also revealed that the couple met in 1986 when Mr Donovan moved from America to run food services at the Grand Hyatt hotel.
The Donovans sold their restaurant to Nick Parkhouse (centre) in August after Mr Donovan’s health deteriorated and he was no longer able to work
Mr. Donovan had interviewed Mrs. Donovan for a job.
‘I went home and said to my roommate, ‘I’m going to marry that man.’ I thought he was great,” Ms. Donovan said.
More to come