ALL THINGS NOMA

THE CONTEXT

This past week, Noma's been in the news because of a report in The New York Times detailing allegations of physical, verbal, and psychological abuse against René Redzepi, the restaurant's very famous chef. Many allegations had been collected online by Jason Ignacio White, who formerly worked at Noma's fermentation lab.

Allegations about the way staff, particularly unpaid staff, were treated surfaced in 2023, and in response Redzepi suggested he would close Noma, calling fine-dining "unsustainable." The most recent round of airing of allegations against Redezepi has occurred in advance of Noma's $1,500-a-head popup, which is currently taking place. Corporate sponsors of the event have pulled out; Redzepi himself has "stepped back."

We chatted about these events quite a bit last week, just like a lot of people who are interested in working in or eating at restaurants. We excerpted a (long) conversation we had mid-week about the whole situation in our This Week at ChefSteps newsletter; and we rounded up a bunch of commentary in our the readings section of that newsletter—people have had a lot to say about it!

DISCUSSION

We're opening up this space for you to weigh in on what's happening. A couple of questions that we've been wrestling with in our discussions have been:

Does a restaurant of Noma's caliber require exploitation of staff?

Is there a model for fine-dining that does not require an army of un- or under-paid staff doing hours of prep?

What was the most shocking allegation of abuse in the Times article about René Redzepi's alleged behavior?

Have you, personally, experienced anything similar in a professional kitchen?

One of the most common responses to the allegations from some chefs has been, "This is the way it has always been, the younger generation of cooks is weak." What do you think about that reaction?

Do you think it's incumbent on the part of food media and journalists to try to figure out whether widely lauded restaurants have abusive workplace cultures? Should that be a requirement of restaurant reviewing? "Best restaurants" list-making?

Do you think the clientele of the finest restaurants actually care about what goes on behind the scenes to make their meals possible?

If you discovered a 1 or 2 or 3 Michelin Star restaurant has an abusive workplace culture, would you refuse to eat there?

Anything's game: We're fascinated by it all!

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Comments

montebello1964

Frankly, I've always assumed these high-profile kitchens were run by jerks. This is true in many fields, certainly including mine (biomedical research). You don't get ahead without stepping on people to get there, and some form of "slave labor" (as it is commonly called by those experiencing it) is ubiquitous. Why would restaruants be any different?

I'd be more interested in hearing about high end kitchens that are run by people who are actually good bosses and mentor their staff the way good employers should. But I bet those are few and far between…

sho.spaeth

Yeah, I am sort of with you, but there are jerks and then there are whatever the Rene Redzepis of the world are (if, of course, the allegations are true).

I also am curious about high end kitchens with healthy work cultures, but I find it difficult to imagine how those places would be surfaced/covered.

JackL

If you discovered a 1 or 2 or 3 Michelin Star restaurant has an abusive workplace culture, would you refuse to eat there?

Part of the fine dining experience today is connecting with the people behind the meal and understanding what it took to create each dish. The shift toward open kitchens and a greater focus on process (e.g., live fire, fermentation, sourcing) reflects that. It’s hard to see how you can meaningfully connect with the food or the people as a diner if you know the workplace culture is toxic.

I also am curious about high end kitchens with healthy work cultures, but I find it difficult to imagine how those places would be surfaced/covered.

More restaurants should make a positive, inclusive work culture part of their public brand. I've started seeing it in other industries and it absolutely affects my purchasing decisions.