A kitchen helper was tied up naked and humiliated for hours. The top French chef Aurélien Largeau has now lost his job.
That’s what it’s about
- Aurélien Largeau has lost his job at the luxury hotel Hôtel du Palais in Biarritz.
- During a so-called initiation ritual, a kitchen helper was humiliated for hours.
- He was tied naked to a chair with an apple in his mouth and a carrot in his anus.
31-year-old Aurélien Largeau, who holds a coveted Michelin star, ran the restaurant at the renowned Hôtel du Palais in Biarritz, France. Last week he gave up begging. Not voluntarily.
A spokeswoman for the Hyatt hotel chain told the AFP news agency that management had been informed of a “disturbing incident,” footage of which had been shared online. The regional daily newspaper “Sud Ouest” reports that the photos show a so-called initiation ritual in the hotel kitchen.
Kitchen helper tied naked to a chair
A kitchen helper was tied naked to a chair for hours, with an apple in her mouth and a carrot in her anus, while all the cooks – the so-called kitchen brigade – watched, including Largeau himself. The footage has now been removed from the internet. The “humiliating” incident took place “under the authority and in the presence of the chef Aurélien Largeau,” Sud Ouest continued.
A Hyatt spokeswoman said: “This incident does not reflect the values we defend. We conducted an investigation and made the appropriate decisions,” she said. “The safety, health and well-being of our colleagues, customers and partners are our absolute priority,” the spokeswoman continued.
Hazing initiation rituals are prohibited by law
The Hôtel du Palais is a 5-star hotel on Biarritz’s seafront promenade with an average price of over 400 euros (around 373 francs) per night. Hazing initiation rituals are banned by law in France, but they are reportedly still practiced in French restaurants. They are often defended as a test of whether young talent can cope with the pressure of the job.
In recent years, several cooking professionals have launched campaigns against violence in kitchens, including one called “Hands off my kitchen hand” and another called “Respect your Kitchen.”
