Daniel Patrick Eardley

1971 - 2018
Daniel Eardley passed away on July 22, 2018, due to an undetected heart condition. The son of an electrical engineer and a social worker, Daniel was raised on a small family farm in Stanfordville, New York. It was there he first found his appreciation for locally grown food and developed a passion for cooking.

Daniel graduated with honors from the Culinary Institute of America in Hyde Park, New York, in 1996. After graduation, his first restaurant job was at Michael Chiarello's Tra Vigne in Napa Valley. From there, he traveled throughout the valley and San Francisco, often working for free in order to learn as much as he could about the industry. Eventually, Daniel returned to New York and worked for Larry Forgione and Jonathan Waxman before landing at Chestnut, in Brooklyn, as Chef and part owner.

Chestnut quickly became a staple of the Carroll Gardens, Brooklyn neighborhood and soon even received a recommendation in the New York Michelin Guide. You could often find Daniel in his native Dutchess County foraging himself for indigenous ingredients, including mushrooms, wild nettles and ramps, filling the car with all it could carry for the restaurant. Daniel more than once said that he wanted diners at Chestnut to feel like they're going to their grandmother's house for dinner - their grandmother who is also a kick-ass cook. Most recently, he had reunited with the Forgione family at American Cut.

When not cooking, you could find Daniel on the slopes of a mountain racing Alpine snowboards. In fact, in his younger days, he toyed with the idea of trying to make a career out it. Whether taking sailing lessons in New York Harbor, surfing in Indonesia or flying down a mountain, Daniel had an adventuresome spirit that took him to 45 of the 50 states and beyond, where he delighted in meeting new people and breaking down language barriers. The world is a poorer place without his smile, his compassion, as well as his passion.

He is survived by his mother, Mary Ellen Eardley of Saugerties, New York, sister, Rachel Rowan, of Fairfield, Connecticut and his partner Angela Rogan of Brooklyn, New York, and is greatly missed by all who had the privilege to know him. Memorial donations may be made in Daniel's name to City Harvest (www.cityharvest.org).

Daniel was generous and patient and demanding of those who worked under him. He was never jealous with his recipes or techniques, and prided himself on sending chefs out into the world better than when they came to him. But there was one recipe that he refused to share with anybody and always said he would take to his grave: a chocolate budino that would knock your socks off. True to his word, we are all going to have to wait a little longer to get another taste.