Nobu Chef Killed in PCH Crash After Teen Driver Strikes Parked Car

A 51-year-old chef at Nobu Malibu was killed early Saturday when a speeding teenager crashed into his parked car on Pacific Coast Highway. The chef had reportedly fallen asleep in the backseat of his vehicle while preparing for a catering job.

The incident occurred around 7 a.m. near Carbon Canyon Road, according to the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department. The chef, who had been with the restaurant since its early days, was found dead in his car. He had worked the previous night at the Malibu location.

The crash involved a sport utility vehicle driven by a 16-year-old boy, who was traveling eastbound on PCH at a speed reported to be above the limit. The SUV reportedly swerved across the fog line and struck the chef's parked car. The impact pushed that vehicle into another car, which then collided with a third vehicle.

The chef's identity has not been released. Nobu Malibu was closed on Saturday as staff dealt with the loss.

The crash scene saw sheriff's deputies cordon off a section of PCH as detectives investigated. Images from the scene depicted a black sedan with significant front-end damage. The California Highway Patrol issued a Sigalert shortly after the crash, closing two lanes of traffic for an unspecified duration.

This incident follows another recent tragedy in the California restaurant industry. In April, Rainer Schwarz, 59, co-owner and executive chef of Driftwood Kitchen and The Deck on Laguna Beach, died in a separate car crash.