an inventor at heart. Some people might say he was a little crazy, but it was crazy good, excited, positive, laughing. This would be the last thing I would have ever guessed for Omar." His funeral was held April 17 at St. Viator Church in Chicago. Personal life Cantu and his family lived in the Old Irving Park neighborhood of Chicago. He had two daughters. He was known for his generosity and positive attitude. The New York Times described him "almost compulsively giving [of] his money, his time, [and] his encouragement." Farina said nothing ever appeared to bother Cantu: "He had this persona around him of being Teflon. No matter what someone said, it didn't faze him. He almost seemed invincible." Reputation and legacy Cantu was described as a "celebrity chef" and his restaurants as "internationally renowned". In the 2013 guide, Fodor's described him as "a cult figure". He was considered more experimental than even other molecular gastronomers, challenging preconceived notions of what could be considered "food." Fellow chefs compared Cantu to Salvador Dalí or Willy Wonka; The New York Times called him the Buck Rogers of cuisine "blazing a trail to a space-age culinary frontier." A 2005 Fast Company article described Moto as "a temple for science-based gastronomy" and Cantu as "the classic mad scientist, a Stephen Hawking acolyte with a basement filled with gadgets, robots, and gazillions of inventions aching for just a little bit more time and attention." New York based chef Wylie Dufresne described Cantu as "an inventor who accidentally ended up as a chef and [was] returning to being an inventor". The host of Iron Chef described Cantu as the most "wildly original" contestant in the show's history. Food & Wine said his "gonzo innovations place[d] him among the shock troops of American cuisine". Farina said Cantu had created a "very inspirational environment" at Moto to which he would "always stay connected". A Washington Post obituary said that Cantu had "turned cooking into alchemy through his playful and surprising brand of molecular gastronomy". Elliot said he hoped Cantu would be remembered for his vision to end hunger, saying "no other chef anywhere is thinking about those same kind of things." Berrista and Moto remained closed for several days in honor of Cantu's memory. Moto reopened on April 18 with a special "celebration of (Cantu's) life" menu featuring contributions by 10–20 former Moto employees. Farina commented