Celebrity chef George Calombaris has confirmed he no longer works for Linchpin Hospitality, the company managing parts of Jon Adgemis’ hospitality empire on behalf of lenders.
“I was simply a contractor to help them with their assets, which technically Jon (Adgemis) owns but Deutsche Bank runs,” Calombaris told The Daily Telegraph.
“It was a simple relationship between me and Deutsche Bank to help facilitate getting these assets open and then obviously I made it very clear when I could see… it’s not the way I want to do things, if that makes any sense.”
Calombaris, who rose to fame as a MasterChef Australia judge, initially joined Adgemis’ Public Hospitality in 2023 when it took over Sydney’s Alpha restaurant.
After Public collapsed under more than $500 million in debt, Calombaris moved to Linchpin, opening Chinese diner Double Happy at the Empire Hotel in Annandale. Staff layoffs followed, prompting his exit.
He stressed his association with Adgemis has been “arm’s length” and that he prefers to focus on his new Sydney venture.
Calombaris said he has learned to ignore media stories about his name and prefers to concentrate on the kitchen.
“I believe in myself. Especially having kids, I’ve got a responsibility to show them that life is going to throw you curveballs… But what you learn through that process is wonderful, wonderful stuff,” he said.
Source: Daily Telegraph.
