Marilyn Hagerty, the food columnist from North Dakota who was famously defended by Anthony Bourdain after her positive review of an Olive Garden, has spoken of her gratitude following the chef's death at 61.
In 2012, Hagerty, then 85, wrote a favourable review of a new Olive Garden in Grand Forks, describing it as 'the largest and most beautiful restaurant now operating in Grand Forks'. The review sparked widespread mockery online, but Bourdain came to her defence, tweeting that her work was 'a history of dining in the America too few of us from the coasts have seen'.
Bourdain later edited and wrote the foreword to a book of Hagerty's collected reviews, praising her as 'never mean' and 'a good neighbour and good citizen first'. Hagerty told BuzzFeed News on Friday that Bourdain's support 'meant a lot to me' and that she was 'sad, shocked' by his death.
