Celebrity chef René Redzepi resigned from Copenhagen’s Noma after allegations of abuse and assault, according to a report by The Associated Press on Thursday. Redzepi posted a tearful resignation video on Instagram in which he said Noma had taken steps to transform its culture and that he takes responsibility for his own actions.
In the caption accompanying the Instagram post, Redzepi wrote that “I have worked to be a better leader and Noma has taken big steps to transform the culture over many years,” and he said, “I recognize these changes do not repair the past.” He added that “An apology is not enough; I take responsibility for my own actions.”
AP reported that Redzepi had faced criticism for years, including reports of mistreatment of staff and a yearslong use of unpaid interns to help run the restaurant. The most recent wave of criticism, the report said, came to a head on social media and was followed by coverage in The New York Times in recent days ahead of the opening of a Noma pop-up in Los Angeles.
Sponsors then pulled their funding for the Southern California residency. The residency opened on Wednesday to a small gathering of protesters, where AP reported that a meal will cost $1,500.
AP also described an online effort by Jason Ignacio White, a former head of Noma’s fermentation lab, who collected anonymous testimonies of alleged abuse and posted them to his Instagram page. The accounts, AP said, covered claims that ranged from verbal abuse to physical assault at the restaurant, including one unidentified person’s statement to White: “I got punched in the face during service there.” Another person wrote, “Noma destroyed my passion for the industry. I struggled with intense anxiety, bad enough to give me panic attacks in the middle of the night. The trauma, abuse and idea that nothing would ever change all led me to walk away from the career.”
The report said Redzepi has previously addressed his aggression, including an Instagram apology tied to The New York Times article. AP reported that in response to that article, Redzepi apologized and said he has worked to change his behavior.
Noma, Redzepi and the Danish royal family’s press department did not immediately return requests for comment on Thursday, AP reported.
Kristoffer Dahy Ernst, editor-in-chief of Danish food magazine Gastro, told AP that Redzepi had to step down for the restaurant to have a chance of survival. Dahy Ernst said, “René Redzepi is the face of Noma, he is Noma,” and that removing him was necessary to address the “huge problem that Noma has right now.” AP reported that Dahy Ernst said it is unclear whether Noma can continue without its founder.
AP reported that Nick Curtin, the American executive chef and owner of Copenhagen’s Michelin-starred Alouette restaurant, said the culinary industry gives too much power to a single person at the top. Curtin told AP: “It’s long overdue that we get rid of the notion that sacrifice, humiliation, pain (and) violence are the ways — the building blocks — for greatness.”
As Noma’s attention shifted abroad, AP said the Copenhagen restaurant was closed as scheduled on Thursday due to the Los Angeles pop-up, while the nearby Noma cafe remained open. Dazio reported from Berlin.