High-end Noma L.A. pop-up will still open despite restaurant abuse controversy
Resurfaced allegations of abuse and an expected protest won’t stop Noma’s sold-out Los Angeles pop-up, which is set to begin on Wednesday evening. A spokesperson for the world-famous Copenhagen restaurant told The Times on Monday that plans for Noma’s 16-week appearance in Silver Lake, with seats priced at $1,500 per guest, will continue as scheduled. The pop-up, the allegations and a public apology by the restaurant’s celebrity chef and co-founder René Redzepi are dividing the restaurant industry and renewing discussions of systemic imbalance and fair compensation. A former Noma employee has for weeks posted a series of anonymous messages to Instagram from other workers and interns recounting physical, verbal and emotional abuse sustained in years prior. These accounts were compiled and posted by Jason Ignacio White, who previously helmed Noma’s fermentation lab. White also posts about his own mental health struggles during his years at the Copenhagen restaurant. A New York Times article on Saturday reported accounts of abuse compiled from interviews with 35 former Noma staff, including instances of humiliation, physical violence and intimidation. …





