Last week, we lost renowned chef Tom Pritchard, who is perhaps known best as one of the area’s culinary trailblazers through his work at Salt Rock Grill.

On the floor of the U.S. House of Representatives Wednesday, Congressman David Jolly (R—Indian Shores) offered kind words to honor his memory, calling Pritchard a “dear friend” and a “Florida food legend.”

“Mr. Speaker, the Pinellas County community, the Tampa Bay community, our culinary and charitable communities throughout Florida, lost a treasure with the passing of Tom Pritchard,” Jolly said.

He added that Pritchard’s charity work also helped make him a pillar in the community and that Pritchard was the sort of person who never met a stranger.

“Anyone who knew Tom will tell you that he was a storyteller who was larger than life. He had his own unique sense of style and had a way of making anyone he met feel like they had known each other for decades.”

Watch video of Jolly’s speech below.