Chicago chef, author Judson Allen, of Taste 222, dies

Judson Allen was the author of "The Spice Diet."

CHICAGO (WLS) -- Chicago chef Judson Todd Allen, who was the culinary lead at Taste 222 in the Fulton River District, has died, according to a tweet by the restaurant on Saturday.

Allen was a celebrity chef who was Steve Harvey's personal chef and author of "The Spice Diet," which talked about how he utilized spices to lose 160 pounds.

The Spice Diet chef stops by ABC7

Judson Allen battled weight problems since childhood, but thanks to a change in approach and the help of The Spice Diet, he lost more than 160 pounds.

In January, Allen talked with ABC7 about how he worked with Harvey to help him lose weight.

Allen had said that Taste 222 was a vision of Don Thompson, a former CEO of McDonalds, who is now the CEO of Taste222.

According to his Facebook bio, Allen also was CEO/founder of Healthy Infused Cuisine. He lived in Oak Park and was a graduate of Chicago High School for Agriculture Sciences, as well as the University of Illinois Chicago, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign and DePaul University's graduate business school.

Celebrity chef Judson Todd Allen shares his Spice Diet

Celebrity chef Judson Todd Allen presents the diet that helped him lose 160 pounds, featuring 60 guilt-free recipes packed with powerhouse flavor created especially for The Spice Diet.

Judson Allen wrote "Spice Diet" which talked about a diet that helped him lose 160 pounds.

WLS

Judson Allen was the author of "The Spice Diet."

WLS

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