Ex-Mario Batali employee recounts being sexually assaulted, prompting a new apology from the celebrity chef

The Washington Post

The Washington Post offers new allegations against the celebrity chef, detailing a Vanity Fair party at his buzzy Los Angeles restaurant Osteria Mozza, a popular restaurant among celebrities. The Post quotes Holly Gunderson, a special events director at the restaurant, who says Batali grabbed her in the crotch, putting his hand “between my legs, up and under, so his hand went on my vagina outside of my clothes. And then he moved his hand backward. So, you know, under my butt. And then continued walking.” In a statement to The Post, Batali said: “I apologize profoundly to the people I have mistreated and hurt. The entire day of events surrounding the party I was the personification of idiocy, a drunken and idiotic fool, with no respect for the staff at Osteria Mozza, the guests nor for the restaurant itself.  That behavior was horribly wrong, shameful and degrading and there are no excuses. I wish I could have the day back and do it right. I take full responsibility for my deplorable actions and am deeply sorry for any pain, humiliation or anguish I caused.”

ALSO:

• Batali may have sexually assaulted a woman in a retaurant’s private room dubbed “the rape room,” according to The New York Times
• The Chew reacts to Mario Batali’s sexual misconduct allegations
• Food Network freezes plans for brand-new Molto Mario episodes
• Products bearing Batali’s name pulled from New York City’s Eataly
• Online petition calls for Target to drop Batali’s product line
• Giada De Laurentiis: “It’s time for a cleansing”