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Mario Batalihas left his restaurant empire more than one year after he was accused ofsexual assault and harassment.
The chef’s longtime business partner Joe Bastianich and sister Tanya Bastianich Manuali informed Batali & Bastianich Hospitality Group staffers in a letter that Batali’s involvement was done after 20 years, according to theNew York Times.
“[Batali] will no longer profit from the restaurants in any way, shape or form,” Manuali reportedly wrote in the letter.
She will now run day-to-day operations of a new company that formed after the dissolution of Batali & Bastianich.
“I have reached an agreement with Joe and no longer have any stake in the restaurants we built together,” Batali tells PEOPLE in a statement. “I wish him the best of luck in the future.”
Batali will also reportedly sell all of his shares in Eataly, an Italian marketplace chain featuring restaurants and retail items as well as cooking classes.
The restaurant group is famed for its roster of high-profile eateries across the globe, including Babbo and Del Posto in New York City.
Bastianich denied knowledge of Batali’s alleged behavior in a statement to theTimes.
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“While I never saw or heard of Mario groping an employee, I heard him say inappropriate things to our employees,” he said. “Though I criticized him for it from time to time, I should have done more. I neglected my responsibilities as I turned my attention away from the restaurants. People were hurt, and for this I am deeply sorry.”
Eaterreported the famed chef groped four different women and engaged in inappropriate touching spanning two decades, andanother accuser subsequently claimedon60 Minutesthat he drugged and assaulted her while she was unconscious in 2005.
Batali denied the woman’s allegations in a statement, but admitted he had been “deeply inappropriate” in the past and apologized.
The NYPD and Manhattan District Attorney’s Officedeclined to filesexual assault charges against Batali after three investigations, citing a lack of evidence.
source: people.com
