Shocking video shows Noma’s celebrity chef viciously humiliating staff in his kitchen — as a wave of ex-workers hurl abuse allegations at the world’s best restaurant ahead of its Los Angeles pop-up.
Footage from a fly-on-the-wall documentary in 2014 showed René Redzepi tearing into young employees at his Copenhagen site over the course of five months.
In just some of the clips he goes on expletive-ridden rants, pushes his hands into people’s faces, shoves into a woman and thrusts his middle finger up at a young man.
During the video his then girlfriend, now wife, Nadine even admitted he was prone to angry outbursts, saying “he can really blow his top.”
Noma has been thrust into the spotlight after dozens of former staff claimed Redzepi physically and verbally assaulted them while working for him.
The California Post has reviewed a documentary that followed the celebrity chef around his Copenhagen restaurant as it rocked up the world rankings in 2014.
“Noma At Boiling Point” showed Redzepi marching around the luxury spot berating young staff to work harder and faster as customers filed in.
Part of the video shows him shove past a female chef and knocking a dish out of her hand, without ever turning around to apologize.
Other footage showed him berating staff, with him saying in one clip: “Next time you f*** this cheese up like that I’m going to explode.”
Another bit said: “Come on god damn it. Fabio come here. Come here! Are you there. Are you awake? Do you understand that right now you have disappointed some guests.”
In another video where he is discussing with a staff member whether the food is in the middle of the plate, he says: “Shut up and just f***ing let me finish or I’m going to go crazy on you okay?”
The same chef was also berated in further brutal footage, with him saying: “First you finish the f***ing dishes, is that clear.”
He shoves his finger under the man’s chin as he flinches. “Get f***ing more on here right now and finish your job before you start bulls***ing me. Stupid.”
While one of his staff cuts a quail egg, he stops him, saying: “F***ing cut this smaller. Stop, stop, stop. What are you doing man. Are you sure they are warm now?
“Hello? People are talking to you! Jesus f***ing Christ man. Do you want to relax, or do you want to f***ing stress now. If you want to stress you can leave.”
In another clip he says: ‘Have you honestly tasted this yourself? Just answer me… you have. It’s a disaster man. You think this is fine.
“You don’t think so? Why did you serve it then, why did you put it here? You know what happens when you do this s*** to me?”
He then takes him outside and says: “This is the last time I will tell you this. The absolute last time… when you do this now I feel like you’re giving me the f*** finger.”
He then thrusts his middle finger towards the man’s face. He yells: “Do you understand this? Really really really? The guests book three months in advance, do you think they give a f*** about you using your head?”
In later footage he says: “Fabio come here. Come here! Cut these off. Okay. Why are they too long? Do you understand why? Why they are too long?
“You you put them in your mouth? Use your common sense? Fabio come on, Fabio, okay? The stems are getting cold!
“This one is not finished! It’s not finished! Fabio give me that one and get on with something else okay? We can’t wait.
“Today is not the day for you to act like that. Fabio you have to be better organized. Okay? Look you’re doing salads.”
In an interview for the documentary, his girlfriend Nadine says: “He can really blow his top, but also calms down again. He is not someone who stays angry for long. Once it’s over, it’s over.”
She later added: “Sometimes he gets so sick of being angry. He feels it’s just coming over him. He doesn’t manage to think before he explodes.
“Because he wants it to work so badly he gets so frustrated when people don’t do it right.”
Last week the culinary world was rocked when 35 people who had worked with the master chef claimed he had attacked them between 2009 and 2017.
The allegations included punching, shoving, threats of deportation and public shaming for mistakes made in the kitchen.
On Tuesday two major sponsors for its Los Angeles pop-up store at the Paramour Estate in Silver Lake — American Express and Blackbird — dramatically pulled out due to the claims against Redzepi.
A spokesman for American Express said: “Our priority is to support the restaurant community and not let this decision impact the many people who have worked hard to bring this residency to life, from local farmers to purveyors and more.”
They added the company was “stepping away” and will “reinvest the proceeds” to Los Angeles hospitality workers.
American Express had bought up six nights for Platinum cardholders and Blackbird had $100,000 worth. They both said buyers will be refunded and the proceeds will go to the LA hospitality sector.
When the pop-up opens on Wednesday there will be a large protest led by a former Noma worker who accused him of abuse and compiled a dossier of disgruntled ex-staff.
Dozens of former employees last week accused Redzepi of widespread physical, verbal, and psychological abuse, describing the work environment as “going to war.”
Workers alleged he routinely punched them, jabbed them with kitchen tools and slammed them against walls.
One said: “He just went down the line and punched us in the chest … even the interns who had been upstairs picking elderflowers.”
They said physical abuse by Redzepi and other senior chefs was “routine,” while supervisors engaged in intimidation, body shaming and public ridicule.
Redzepi responded to the claims in a statement, saying: “Although I don’t recognize all details in these stories, I can see enough of my past behavior reflected in them to understand that my actions were harmful to people who worked with me.
“To those who have suffered under my leadership, my bad judgment, or my anger, I am deeply sorry and I have worked to change.”
The LA pop-up will last for 16 weeks and has completely sold out starting Wednesday. A protest is planned by labor group One Fair Wage at the Silver Lake venue.
Redzepi, who founded Noma in Copenhagen, Denmark, became a culinary superstar after opening his eatery in 2003.
It was ranked the best in the world by Restaurant magazine a record five times between 2010 and 2021 and was awarded three Michelin stars.
The pop-up, following Noma’s previous events in Sydney, Kyoto and Tulum, is scheduled to run for roughly 60 nights.
According to Redzepi’s Instagram post, tickets sold out “in minutes” when they went on sale January 26. Each night features 42 seats, generating up to $63,000 per evening and an estimated $4 million over the entire run.
The ticketing platform Tock, owned by American Express, noted all reservations were final, nonrefundable and cannot be transferred.
The restaurant and Redzepi have not made any public statements since the investors pulled out. The California Post has reached out for comment.
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