Dallas Chef Luis Dominguez Dies After Contracting COVID-19

Dallas chef Luis Dominguez, known for his work at restaurants like HG Sply Co and Smoke, has died after contracting COVID-19.

Dominguez died on July 22 after spending more than two weeks in the hospital after contracting the virus, according to the Dallas Morning News. A 20-year veteran of Dallas’s culinary scene, Dominguez worked at a number of wildly popular eateries over the years, including Tillman’s in the Bishop Arts District and Hattie’s. Most recently, he served as the executive sous chef at HG Sply Co, and spent more than a decade in the kitchen at chef Tim Byres’s now-shuttered Smoke.

Since the beginning of the coronavirus pandemic, 607 people in Dallas County have died after contracting COVID-19, and more than 46,000 have tested positive for the virus. At present, the county is still at the highest risk level for COVID-19, with more than 400 new cases reported on Monday.

Dallas restaurateur Elias Pope, who owns HG Sply Co, has established a GoFundMe to raise money to help pay for Dominguez’s outstanding medical bills. “Luis was a selfless and loving leader for his family and his team. He brought joy to those around him and never failed to put others above himself,” Pope’s GoFundMe page reads. “In his final days, he worried most about his family back home in Mexico and here in Texas that he provided for.”

• Chef from Dallas restaurants HG Sply Co. and Smoke died after COVID-19 complications [DMN]