Celebrity chef Mario Batali accused of sexual misconduct

Celebrity chef, restaurateur and co-host of ABC’s The Chew Mario Batali on Monday was publicly accused of inappropriate touching and sexual misconduct over the course of 20 years.

The website Eater NY published a bombshell expose detailing the allegations of sexual misconduct against the 57-year-old businessman, cookbook author and married father-of-two.

Three of the unnamed accusers worked for Batali’s restaurant empire during the 1990s, while the fourth was not an employee of his but had an encounter with him at a party in New Orleans a decade ago. 

Mario Batali with Gwyneth Paltrow

Celebrity chef and restaurateur Mario Batali (pictured right with his friend Gwyneth Paltrow) on Monday was publicly accused of inappropriate touching and sexual misconduct

ABC, where Batali has been co-hosting the daytime cooking show The Chew, has asked the chef to step away from the program

ABC, where Batali has been co-hosting the daytime cooking show The Chew, has asked the chef to step away from the program

One former employee claimed that Batali repeatedly grabbed her from behind in a ‘disgusting bear hug’ and pressed her body against his on the job; another accused him of groping her and forcing her to straddle his legs, and a third said the famed chef grabbed her breasts at a party. 

The most detailed account comes from a female chef, then in her 20s, who ran into Batali at an after-party that followed a wine auction in New Orleans about 10 years ago and struck up a conversation with the revered restaurateur, but quickly realized that he was drunk.

The woman, who was not identified, claimed that a few minutes into their encounter, Batali turned ‘creepy’ and offered her a job on the spot at double the salary she was getting. 

As they were talking, someone bumped the woman’s hand, prompting her to spill wine all over the front of her shirt. That is when, according to the chef, Batali proceeded to rub her breasts under the guise of helping her clean up.

‘He just went to town, and I was so shocked,’ the accuser told Eater NY. ‘Jaw on the ground, I just stepped back from him in utter disgust and walked away.’ 

In response to the story, Batali issued a statement  apologizing for his ‘failures’ and announcing his decision to stay away from the day-to-day operations of his business empire spanning 25 restaurants, which are part of the Batali & Bastianich Hospitality Group.  

‘I apologize to the people I have mistreated and hurt. Although the identities of most of the individuals mentioned in these stories have not been revealed to me, much of the behavior described does, in fact, match up with ways I have acted,’ Batali conceded. 

‘That behavior was wrong and there are no excuses. I take full responsibility and am deeply sorry for any pain, humiliation or discomfort I have caused to my peers, employees, customers, friends and family.’

‘I have work to do to try to regain the trust of those I have hurt and disappointed. To the people who have been at my side during this time — my family, my partners, my employees, my friends, my fans — I am grateful for your support and hopeful that I can regain your respect and trust. I will spend the next period of time trying to do that.’

ABC, where Batali has been co-hosting the daytime cooking show The Chew since it premiered in 2011, said it has asked the chef to step away from the program while it was reviewing the allegations against him. 

‘ABC takes matters like this very seriously as we are committed to a safe work environment,’ a network spokesperson said. ‘While we are unaware of any type of inappropriate behavior involving him and anyone affiliated with the show, we will swiftly address any alleged violations of our standards of conduct.’

Batali’s wife is Susi Cahn, the daughter of the late Miles Cahn, co-founder of Coach Handbags. The couple got married in 1994 and have two sons together, ages 14 and 16. They split their time between New York City’s Greenwich Village and Northern Michigan. 



Read more at DailyMail.co.uk