Dozens of Former Noma Workers Allege Physical Abuse by René Redzepi

More than 35 former employees told The New York Times they experienced or witnessed physical and psychological abuse by René Redzepi while working at Noma in Copenhagen, alleging punching, jabbing with kitchen tools, slamming into walls and sustained public humiliation. The accounts describe a pattern of violence and silence spanning roughly 2009 to 2017 that former staff say was built into the restaurant’s culture.

The New York Times detailed a February 2014 episode in which, during a busy dinner service, Redzepi ordered the kitchen staff outside into the cold and, the story says, “escalated the attack, punching his employee in the ribs and screaming that no one would go back inside until the chef said, loud enough for all to hear, that he liked giving D.J.s oral sex. His co-workers stood in silence until he breathlessly complied.” That incident, one of several recounted in interviews, was described by former staffers as never discussed again after the shift ended.

Former chef Alessia, who asked that her surname not be used out of fear of retaliation, described the workplace in blunt terms: “Going to work felt like going to war,” she said, adding, “You had to force yourself to be strong, to show no fear.” Other ex-staffers who spoke to the Times recounted being jabbed with utensils, shoved against walls, and screamed at in front of colleagues across multiple years.

Interns who worked at Noma also provided named accounts. Mehmet Çekirge, who interned at Noma in 2018, said supervisors mocked his accent, called him a donkey and made gobbling sounds as he walked by, concluding, “He raised a generation of bullies, and they bullied us.” Online posts and forum threads on Reddit and similar communities have amplified user-sourced anecdotes, including claims of interns being smacked in the face, burned by a steamer and laughed at, and long unpaid shifts described by some as 70-hour weeks; those posts are user-generated and have not been independently verified.

The recent surge of testimony followed public posts by Jason Ignacio White, who worked at Noma for three years as director of fermentation and posts under the handle @microbes_vibes on Instagram. White’s posts prompted creation of a testimony site collecting anonymous and signed accounts, and former employees began sharing experiences across social media and specialized culinary sites.

Noma is a world‑renowned restaurant that held top rankings from Restaurant magazine multiple times between 2010 and 2021 and earned three Michelin stars; the venue closed in 2023. Responses from Redzepi and his representatives have varied in public reporting: some outlets say he has denied physically abusing staff, suggesting he may have “bumped” into people, while others report a recent “grovelling apology” issued days before an exclusive Los Angeles pop-up priced at $1,500 per person. Past statements referenced in industry summaries characterize Redzepi as having admitted earlier in his career to being aggressive and impulsive and calling himself a bully.

Journalistic and industry observers note that the collected accounts remain testimonies and are not legally verified, and there has been no public announcement of a formal investigation. As dozens of former Noma employees and new online testimonies accumulate, the accusations have intensified scrutiny of labor practices in fine-dining kitchens and raised questions about accountability for high-profile chefs and establishments.