Chef Mark Peel Dies from Lung Cancer, Nine Days after Diagnosis
Mark Peel, chef and creator of Campanile and La Brea Bakery, has died at the age of 67. He received a diagnosis of stage-four lung cancer just nine days before his eventual death on June 20.
9 days from diagnosis to death. Shattering. Mark Peel deserved better. He didn’t want to be ravaged by treatment he told me last week. Never even given the option.
— Daphne Brogdon (@DaphBrog) June 23, 2021
Peel was recognized as a Los Angeles restaurateur and a guest judge on the television show Top Chef.
Visited Manzanar with my family. Glad it remains to remind us We cannot repeat that shame! pic.twitter.com/3t9bOUUsJO
— Mark Peel (@ChefMarkPeel) August 9, 2016
Peel started working under Wolfgang Puck in 1975. He was cooking in Santa Monica when he met his first wife Nancy Silverton, with whom he founded La Brea Bakery. After the La Brea Bakery brand was sold in 2001, he and Silverton divorced in 2004.
His signature restaurant Campanile, open for 23 years, closed in 2012.
Opening new chapters with Daphne Brogdon! pic.twitter.com/IfDthWdPQq
— Mark Peel (@ChefMarkPeel) January 26, 2016
Peel is survived by his wife Daphne Brogdon.
So, Ill say it as plainly as possible: we were married when died. Our divorce had been halted last year. We were good co parents. Full stop. He wasn’t working bc of Covid so we had more time together. We would never be Ozzie & Harriet but we shared our lives
— Daphne Brogdon (@DaphBrog) June 23, 2021
Bombo Foods, 2015-2017
Prawn Coastal, 2018-2021
I can cook food anywhere pic.twitter.com/Qnxrz52zGQ
— Mark Peel (@ChefMarkPeel) May 7, 2014