Westport Restaurateur Mario Batali Takes Leave

WESTPORT, CT — Famed restaurateur and star chef Mario Batali is taking a leave of absence from his companies after four allegations of inappropriate touching surfaced.

Batali is one of the people behind the Tarry Lodge locations in Westport and New Haven. The restaurants serve hand-made pasta, meats and fritti and the New Haven location has a pizza bar.

The women told Eater that Batali had groped or inappropriately touched them over the last 20 years. Other people said they had heard similar rumors of the chef's aggressive and inappropriate behavior with women.

Batali said in a statement to Eater that he would take a leave of absence from the day-to-day operations of his businesses. He admitted inappropriate behavior.
"I apologize to the people I have mistreated and hurt," he said in the statement. "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.

"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."

Batali rose to fame with a show on the Food Network and since has launched dozens of restaurants. He is also a majority shareholder in the grocery store and restaurant Eataly.

Patch was unable to contact the Batali & Bastianich Hospitality Group, the management company that supports nearly two dozen restaurants owned by Batali and other stakeholders. The group's site appeared to have crashed shortly after Eater made the allegations against Batali public.

The group confirmed to Eater that a restaurant employee had officially reported inappropriate behavior by Batali to the company in October. The hospitality group told Eater it was the first official complaint filed about Batali. The group added that it would hire an independent firm to conduct a review of the allegations against Batali.

Batali has also left his position as co-host of the daytime show "The Chew" on ABC while the company reviews the allegations, a spokesman said.

The four women who said Batali inappropriately touched or grouped them all spoke to Eater on the condition of anonymity, fearing retaliation from the powerful chef, according to the website. Reporters said they confirmed the women's stories when possible with friends, family and colleagues, as well as with public information.

One woman, a chef, told Eater that during a restaurant industry party about 10 years ago, Batali began rubbing the woman's breasts after wine was spilled on her shirt.

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

Three additional women, all of whom worked for Batali at some point throughout their careers, described similar touching. One women, a former employee told Eater that Batali repeatedly grabbed her from behind and held her against him. Another woman, also a former employee, says he groped her and forced her to straddle him.

You can read Eater's full investigation here.

Watch Now: Chef Mario Batali Under Fire After Sexual Harassment Claims

Reporting by Ciara McCarthy, Patch Staff

Image credit: Bryan Bedder / Stringer / Getty Images Entertainment