Associated yesterday in the Roq Rico (Manhattan), Antoine Westermann and the entrepreneur Francis Staub do not get along anymore. According to New York Post, the latter accuses the starred chef of having his hand too heavy with his money.
According to the tabloid, Antoine Westermann would have charged the Alsatian businessman 19,000 dollars at the head of an empire of kitchen equipment, for trips to the rest of the state of New York and Grignan in France where he has a holiday home. Other expenses are cited in the complaint: $ 16,000 to work on one of his restaurants in Paris, $ 200,000 in marketing, $ 350,000 for work on wood at Coq Rico and $ 40,000 in varied expenses . East 20th Street's restaurant budget has increased from $ 2.4 million to $ 6.9 million, according to the New York Post.
Contacted, Antoine Westermann declares that he would have "a multitude of things to say"On the charges contained in the newspaper article,"but I reserve my comment to justice". "I would prefer to shout all I have to say about the rooftops, but there are competent people who will take care of it."
Thanks last year, Chief Westermann had sued his ex-partner on the grounds that he continued to use his name to promote their restaurant specialized in poultry while Antoine Westermann was no longer in the business.
