It doesn’t seem that the sexual misconduct allegations brought against celebrity chef Mario Batali were that shocking to some of his colleagues.
In an article published in Eater New York Monday, four women detailed their alleged experiences with sexual misconduct against the "The Chew" star. One chef said that 10 years ago, Batali groped her with his bare hands after spilling wine on her shirt, while another woman said that he inappropriately grabbed her from behind and held her against his own body.
Following the allegations, fellow celebrity chefs including Anthony Bourdain and Tom Colicchio slammed Batali and seemed to insinuate that they knew about the allegations ahead of time.
"No. Trust me. Monday is really gonna suck," Bourdain wrote on Twitter Sunday. He later followed up, writing, "It's where you stand when the people you care about and admire do awful things that matters. Keeping head down and hoping it goes away? No."
No. Trust me. Monday is really gonna suck .
— Anthony Bourdain (@Bourdain) December 11, 2017
It’s where you stand when the people you care about and admire do awful things that matters. Keeping head down and hoping it goes away? No.
— Anthony Bourdain (@Bourdain) December 11, 2017
When the story broke early Monday, Bourdain took to Twitter again, tweeting, "It's Batali. And it's bad."
It’s Batali. And it’s bad .
— Anthony Bourdain (@Bourdain) December 11, 2017
"Top Chef" star Colicchio retweeted Bourdain's tweet about Batali adding, "And no one should be surprised."
And no one should be surprised https://t.co/DCLvDzNYwO
— Tom Colicchio (@tomcolicchio) December 11, 2017
Following the allegations, Batali released a statement to Eater, saying in part, "I apologize to the people I have mistreated and hurt. Although the identities of most of the individuals mentioned in these stories have not been revealed to me, much of the behavior described does, in fact, match up with ways I have acted. That behavior was wrong and there are no excuses. I take full responsibility and am deeply sorry for any pain, humiliation or discomfort I have caused to my peers, employees, customers, friends and family."
Cox Media Group