Jock Zonfrillo funeral: Inside the secret Sydney ceremony to farewell MasterChef judge

Family and friends of the late Jock Zonfrillo made an emotional exit from a Sydney chapel on Saturday morning as they farewelled the celebrity chef.

The Masterchef judge, who died on April 30 aged 46, was laid to rest in a private funeral surrounded by a small group of family and friends. 

Zonfrillo’s widow Lauren Fried, who shares children, Alfie, six, and Isla, two, with her late husband, was among the pallbearers who led a close-knit of mourners out of the small chapel after celebrating his life.

She carried his coffin alongside Zonfrillo’s fellow Masterchef judge Andy Allen and four other men.

Zonfrillo’s coffin was covered with the Royal Banner of Scotland and adorned with white orchids.

The Royal Banner is a nod to the chef’s Scottish heritage. He was born and raised in Glasgow.

A Scottish marcher played the bagpipes as the pallbearers exited the chapel.

Guests exited the venue in silence, while Allen looked visibly emotional – breaking down in tears while carrying Zonfrillo’s coffin.

As guests arrived for the morning service, a black and white photograph of Zonfrillo was also placed inside the Sydney chapel.

Guests were dressed head-to-toe in black as friends, family, and notable stars solemnly led the arrivals.

Among those who attended were Zonfrillo’s fellow Masterchef judges Melissa Leong – who was visibly emotional and comforted by her friends as she went inside – Andy Allen and his pregnant wife Alex Davey, former Masterchef judge George Calombaris, and celebrity chef Shannon Bennett.

Other TV chefs who turned out to pay their respects included My Kitchen Rules stars Manu Feidel and Colin Fassnidge, as well as Miguel Maestre and Matt Moran.

Irish-born Fassnidge was distraught following the sombre farewell and was seen holding his hand to his face and he fought back tears.

Feidel wrapped his arm around Moran as they comforted each other while leaving the emotional service. 

Jimmy Barnes had arrived alone to the memorial, but was later joined by daughter Mahalia as they sang Amazing Grace together, while former Australian of the Year Grace Tame attended with her fiancé Max Heerey.

Wheelchair tennis champion and 2022 Australian of the Year Dylan Alcott also paid his respects.

Following the memorial, Fassnidge shared a photo of his hand grasping a glass of whiskey on the rocks as he and a group of others attended a ‘random pub’.

The grief-stricken celebrity chef sat at a tartan-patterned tablecloth – the pattern is often associated with Scotland, where Zonfrillo was born, as Scottish kilts most often have tartan patterns.

‘Very fitting the random pub we drop in for a farewell whiskey,’ he wrote alongside the photo. 

The service has been kept firmly under wraps by Fried, who sent out invitations for the Sydney interment earlier this week.

They were accompanied with strict instructions for family and celebrity friends to not reveal any details about the funeral.

Fried also revealed to guests there would be no wake held after the burial, an attendee told the publication on Saturday.

‘The family just wants it to happen without any of the attention his death has attracted, which has understandably been overwhelming,’ they said. 

The funeral patron added: ‘They’re trying to keep it as personal as they can. It’s critical they be given the space to do that.’

While Zonfrillo and his family resided in Melbourne during his role on MasterChef, Fried chose to host his funeral in Sydney. 

She reportedly chose the location as she originally hails from Sydney, where her extended family is based, and it’s where Zonfrillo first moved to from Glasgow 23 years ago.

Zonfrillo died in his hotel room at Zagame’s House on Lygon Street in Carlton, Melbourne on April 30 and was found by police at about 2am on Monday, May 1 – the same day Channel Ten was meant to premiere the fifteenth season of MasterChef Australia. 

They were responding to a welfare check called in by his wife who was in Italy at the time with their son and daughter. 

The media personality was scheduled for several publicity engagements for season 15 of MasterChef when he died suddenly. 

Daily Mail Australia can reveal that when the police entered the hotel room to conduct a welfare check, officers believed that Zonfrillo had died of natural causes and didn’t find anything that suggested otherwise.

There was also no drug paraphernalia found in the hotel room, sources said.

In the wake of the tragic news, Zonfrillo’s fellow Masterchef judges Melissa Leong and Andy Allen pulled out of all media appearances to promote the cooking show’s return.

The season premiere was rescheduled to Sunday, May 7.

Zonfrillo is survived by his third wife, Lauren Fried, and his four children: grown-up daughters Ava and Sophia, from his first two marriages, and six-year-old Alfie and two-year-old Isla, with Fried.