Hamburg – The whole city mourned and cried along with the celebrity chef and TV favorite Karlheinz Hauser (ZDF-“Kitchen fight“)!
Her beloved son Tom was there on June 29th Hello half marathon in the Hamburg collapsed after 19 kilometers, then fell face down. He had to be resuscitated at the scene. Clinic, apparently a brain hemorrhage. Doctors fought for his life for days in the intensive care unit at University Hospital Eppendorf (UKE). Unfortunately in vain! Finally on July 7, there was no hope. Tom is only 26 years old.
The star chef is now attending his friend Cornelia Poletto’s dinner with his wife Margarete (50).
More than 200 friends and companions said goodbye on July 19 at the market church in the Blankenese district, including star chef Cornelia Poletto (53), an old friend. At their dinner event “Palazzo”, the star chef (who has two Michelin stars) and his wife Margarete reappeared in public after a long time.
Photos from happy days: Karlheinz Hauser with daughter Emma (14), wife Margarete (50), son Tom (†26) and daughter Carolin (24, from left)
Hauser: “You can’t completely hide”
Hauser still looked deeply affected, but seemed calm. When asked how he was doing, Hauser told BILD: “Of course things are not much better and we are still very sad and miss Tom very much. Unfortunately, time cannot heal wounds in cases like this and they will not go away either. It is quite difficult. But it goes on and we have to stay strong – for the sake of our Tom. The pain remains. If friends invite us, we go out again. You can’t completely hide.”
Star chef Cornelia Poletto (54) and her husband Rüdiger Grube (74) at Tom’s funeral service. Guests are asked not to wear black
His three children Tom, Carolin (24) and Emma (14) have always been the most important motivation for the star chef. She has a very close and loving relationship with Tom. In his obituary, the family wrote: “You were our greatest gift – we were allowed to have you with us for too short a time.”
Celebrity chefs continue Tom’s passion
The two even have a joint venture, “Hauser Collection” – for exclusive gastronomic experiences and luxury catering. Hauser has also been responsible for catering at the British restaurant since 2022 formula 1-Racing team McLaren. He: “Here, Tom and I have worked together 220 days a year for the last three years. Of course, I miss him endlessly here too. But of course I will carry on his spirit. Tom has always been a part of my company.”
Karlheinz Hauser is one of the stars of the ZDF cooking show “The Kitchen Battle”
Hauser also owns a restaurant Mercedes-Customer center in Rastatt: “Luckily, I had an operations manager there. After the death, I cut things back a bit. Now I do what feels right and what feels fun again. I’m also slowly starting to watch television again.”
