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Robert ‘Chef Rob’ Hoffman

June 22, 1958 – May 20, 2018

Rob was born in Coeur d’Alene, Idaho. He grew up hunting and fishing and learned how to cook wild game from both his mother and father. At the very early age of 7 he became interested in cooking. His first adventure was to make doughnuts; when his dad and he bit into them it almost broke their teeth.

He attended the University of Idaho and majored in architecture, but he left that field to become a self-taught chef. He was an avid reader of recipe books that taught him many things. Two highly trained chefs influenced his career, and they encouraged him to follow his passion; he was so grateful to learn and work with them. He had a natural knack for creating menu items with wild game and seafood. He seasoned them perfectly, and he even created his own seasonings and barbecue sauces.

Chef Rob was soft-spoken, gentle and loved to teach young adults and kids how to cook. He even had cooking classes for the community. He loved Pendleton, Ore. and the community that was supportive. His other love was basketball; for the last 28 years he would get up at five o’clock to play basketball at six in the morning, no matter what the weather was doing. If you started talking to him about boats, motorcycles and skiing through the trees, you almost couldn’t get away from him. A lot of people knew Chef Rob because of his bib overalls — he had several designer bibs.

Chef Rob came to Pendleton in 1983 and took a chef’s job at the Tapadera Motel and Restaurant; Tom Drumheller was his boss. He packed up his belongings and rode down here on his motorcycle. In 1985 we were able to purchase the Skyroom Restaurant at the airport, and he introduced Pendleton to his famous creamy fettuccine and smoked prime rib and wild game. People tell him that his huckleberry crème brule was the best, comparable to the chefs in France. We always talked about having a restaurant in a house, but never thought it would be as magnificent as the Raley House. We have lived and worked here for 27 years.

Rob died of glioblastoma brain cancer. Until his death, he was still gentle and kind and thought he would beat it. He died peacefully with his mother and wife by his bedside, and his dad was with him for five days before he passed.

He is survived by his loving wife, Raphael; Darrell Hoffman, his dad; Elaine Bartlett, his mom; stepdad, Herschel Bartlett; and his younger brother, Lyle. Other stepsisters and stepbrothers are: Herschel Bartlett Jr., Paul Bartlett, Theresa Bartlett, Sheri Bartlett and Pamela Faulk.

Awards: Restaurateur of the Year 1997, Oregon Restaurant Association; Regional Director of Oregon Restaurant Association, two terms; Best of the Best Chefs 1991, Pacific N.W. Magazine.

Volunteer Work: Crow’s Shadow Institute of the Arts fundraisers; judge for Oregon State Pro Start Competition; Taste of the Nation fundraisers, five years, Portland Ore.; American Culinary Federation events.

In lieu of flowers, please donate to your charity of choice in c/o Burns Mortuary of Pendleton. A memorial service will take place at 1 p.m. on June 10, 2018, at the Coeur d’Alene Seventh-day Adventist Church, 111 E. Locust Ave.

Burns Mortuary of Pendleton is in charge of arrangements. Sign the online condolence book at www.burnsmortuary.com.