Australia’s breakfast king, chef and restaurateur Bill Granger, has died at the age of 54 in a London hospital surrounded by his family, reports EMILY WOODS. 

AUSTRALIAN chef and restaurateur Bill Granger has died at the age of 54 in a London hospital surrounded by his family.

Melbourne-born Granger passed away peacefully on Christmas Day, his family confirmed in a statement on Instagram early Wednesday morning.

Granger, “a dedicated husband and father”, leaves behind his wife Natalie Elliott and three daughters, Edie, Inès and Bunny. All were at his bedside.

“It is with great sadness that the family of Bill Granger announce he has passed away on 25th December at the age of 54,” the post said.

“He will be deeply missed by all, with his loss most profoundly felt by his adored family, who are grateful for all the love and support that has been given.”

Tributes are flowing from the international food world, including chefs Jamie Oliver and Nigella Lawson.

“He was such a wonderful man, warm, charming, and had an extraordinary ease and style in cooking that could only come from Australia,” Oliver posted on Instagram.

“I’m heartbroken to hear this. So cruel,” Lawson said.

Known as Australia’s breakfast king, Granger was a self-taught cook who became a celebrated global restaurateur and food writer over his three-decade career.

He opened his first restaurant, bills, in 1993 at Sydney’s Darlinghurst.

Granger was handed a Medal of the Order of Australia in January for service to the tourism and hospitality sector.

At the time Granger said hospitality wasn’t the easiest business “but I can’t think of many other jobs where the job is just to bring a bit of happiness and sunshine into people’s lives”, in a social media post.

Granger and his wife built a successful business that has grown to 19 restaurants globally, including Sydney, London, Tokyo and Seoul.

He wrote 14 cookbooks and created five television series.