An acclaimed San Francisco chef has suspended operations at all three of his high-profile restaurants after publicly posting abusive messages allegedly sent to him by a fashion influencer.
Jeffrey Lee's fall from grace was apparently sparked by the content creator's comments last month. Lieutenant Cat She lightly criticized his hamburger after eating it at one of his restaurants. san francisco standard It was reported on Friday.
Lee was the star behind Juni. A 10-year-old omakase restaurant It had been given one Michelin star for five years, but the more modest star hand roll project and hamburger projectboth opened at the end of 2024.
“Effective immediately, Jeffrey Lee has been relieved of his role as Executive Chef of Burger Project, Hand Roll Project, and Juni,” the company said on Instagram.
“Going forward, Jeffrey will no longer have any involvement in the operations of these restaurants. We do not condone the behavior he has displayed in recent weeks.” According to the post. “As a company, we unequivocally condemn all forms of bullying and harassment, whether online or in real life. This behavior is at odds with the values and culture we strive to uphold in our business. It's a complete contrast.”
Ms. Ensign criticized the Burger Project's food on Instagram and TikTok, and Ms. Lee criticized her on social media.
The second lieutenant took a screenshot of the message and shared it on the Dec. 23 news story. Posts with over 100,000 views.
“She seems very strange and unstable,” Lee said in one letter, a screenshot of which was also shared on Instagram. He added that she has “the most annoying Karen voice” and advised her to stop going to Golden State Warriors games so the team wouldn't lose.
The lieutenant said he dined at the Hamburger Project on Dec. 10. I posted a somewhat negative reviewdescribed Smashburger as “delicious but not great'' and “not for me.''
Two weeks later, Lee started randomly commenting on her content.
“It was just random things like my weight and my appearance and every time I posted I would react to people's comments,” she told The Standard. “Nothing about my experience [at Hamburger Project]”
Mr Lee told the Standard he never commented on the second lieutenant's appearance.
“There were accusations that I humiliated her body,” he said. “It was completely fabricated so that she could control the narrative.”
As the backlash intensified, Lee made his social media private and announced his decision to exit all three of his restaurants on Friday.
“I learned my lesson,” Lee said. “I shouldn't have replied. But just because I'm a chef-owner, I don't think my voice should be silenced. What I was trying to understand was that this influencer was exempt from my critique. That's why she's allowed to come to my house, my restaurant, to critique my cooking.”
