Guyanese cook Maurice Gordon, known as ‘Tripee,’ who founded the Tripee’s Caribbean Restaurant in New York, lost his battle to the deadly coronavirus in the United States of America last month.
Gordon, 75, also known as “Tripee”, formerly of Georgetown, died on June 4th at Kings County Hospital Center.
According to one of his sons, who asked not to be named, Gordon contracted the virus sometime between late April and early May.
He said his father was residing at a nursing home prior to his demise.
The son added that his father’s journey with COVID-19 was “like a roller-coaster”, as he explained that he tested negative, then positive and then negative again.
He explained that prior to the death of his father, he tested negative but showed symptoms of the virus, which caused him to develop an uncontrollable seizure that eventually led to his death.
Gordon had numerous jobs while living in Guyana, including at the Guyana Airways Corporation.
A post on the “Honoring Guyanese lost to Coronavirus” Facebook page stated, “regardless of whatever job he held, Tripee always found time to practice his first love and primary craft, his culinary skills.”
It noted that Gordon earned his moniker due to his delicious cook-up rice, which was made with liberal portion of cow tripe. “He has been credited for cooking the best cow tripe cook-up rice in the history of Guyana and the Caribbean, which led to his alias name “Tripee,” the post said.
Gordon migrated to the United States of America 45 years ago and enrolled at the New York Institute of Dietetics, a culinary school, and later launched his restaurant at Nostrand Avenue, Brooklyn, New York.
According to the post, his restaurant was labeled “one of the first pre-eminent Guyanese and West Indian restaurant in New York at that time.”
Gordon was said to have a highly creative, inventive and innovative cooking and baking style and he was credited by the post with inventing bakes with salt fish cooked inside of them and eggless omelets.
He was also said to be a lover of music and an avid sports fan.
