Daniel Nemec

Daniel Nemec passed away on March 11, 2021 at the age of 48. Daniel was preceded in death by his mother, Barbara Nemec. He is survived by his father, Fred Nemec; his wife, Danielle Nemec; his siblings, Renee Nemec Collette, Cheree Thormaehlen (Elmond), Brian Nemec (Michelle), John Nemec (Lisa), Christie Milawski (Chris) and Stacie Massey (Troy), and numerous nieces and nephews.

Daniel always had a jovial laugh and a warm smile for everyone he met. With a huge heart and a giving soul, Daniel made everyone feel welcome. He would unselfishly go out of his way to make others happy and much of the way he did this was through his passion for cooking. From an early age, he could be found in the kitchen mixing up ingredients and creating concoctions with whatever food he had on hand. Growing up in the Nemec household meant picking vegetables from the garden, canning many of those vegetables and eating lots of wild game that dad and the boys brought home from their hunting trips. Daniel's love of cooking came from all the time he spent learning how to use those ingredients to make family recipes with mom and grilling with dad. Those were treasured times that shaped Daniel’s future.

Daniel was so passionate about food and cooking that he turned it into a career. He graduated from the Le Cordon Bleu College of Culinary Arts and apprenticed under European Master Chef Christian Echterbille and he was a member of the Kappa Sigma. He went on to be the Executive Chef at Girasole Italian restaurant, Flemings Steakhouse and was the Corporate Executive Chef at Kirby’s Steakhouse.  During his career he prepared award winning dishes for several fundraising events, multiple NBA events, various food and wine shows and hosted heads of state and high-profile clients. He earned several top honors for his creations including Chef of Austin, March of Dimes Star Chef, and in 2012 he competed against chefs across the country to win the Walmart/Kingsford National Steak Challenge.

Renowned Chef Thomas Keller once said, “The real purpose is to make people happy and that is what cooking is all about.”

That is what drove Daniel. His desire to make people happy. All the love he had in his heart was put into his food. For Daniel it wasn’t just about how the food tasted, but how it made you feel and when enjoying his food, you always felt loved. Daniel was a treasure to all of us, one that we will never be able to replace. Although his life on earth was too short, God is truly gaining an angel, one with a mischievous smile, a heart of gold and an endless love for others.

A Visitation will be held from 5:00PM – 7:00PM on Monday, March 15, 2021 at Sawyer-George Funeral Home. The Funeral Mass will be celebrated on Tuesday, March 16, 2021 at 1:00PM at St. Patrick Catholic Church with Interment to follow at Seaside Memorial Park Cemetery.

In Lieu of Flowers the family is requesting for donations to be made to the March of Dimes Foundation. https://www.marchofdimes.org/giving/support-general.aspx