Investors Sue to Remove Jose Garces From His Restaurants

A group of investors are suing to remove Iron Chef Jose Garces from three of his Philly restaurants, Philly.com reports. The chef/restaurateur has been facing several lawsuits since last fall, with claims he underpaid investors, food suppliers, and a landlord.

On Monday, food vendor and investor Jim Sorkin and investors Tom and Maria Spinner filed suit in an attempt to take managerial control of Amada, Village Whiskey, and Tinto — Garces’ first three restaurants — away from him. They’re accusing Garces and his representatives of mismanaging millions of dollars. According to the lawsuit, the investors voted back in January to take control of the three restaurants from Garces but he ignored that vote, Philly.com reports.

Earlier this month, Sorkin’s company sued Garces and seven of his businesses for more than $850,000 in unpaid bills. In another lawsuit, the Spinners alleged the chef was running a Ponzi scheme.

Garces opened his first restaurant, Spanish tapas spot Amada, in Old City in 2005. Five years later, he was named an Iron Chef on the Food Network series and entered the celebrity chef category. He went on to open or manage 29 restaurants, with most in Philly and the others in Atlantic City, New York City, Chicago, Washington, D.C., Palm Springs, and Scottsdale. He lost four Atlantic City restaurants, including outposts of Amada and Village Whiskey, when the Revel casino shuttered in 2014, but returned to the shore last March with two new restaurants at the Tropicana. Just a few weeks ago, the New York City location of Amada closed.

• Jose Garces investors sue to oust him from 3 restaurants [Philly.com]
• For celebrity chef Jose Garces, a table set with lawsuits [Philly.com]
• Jose Garces in Crisis: The Trials of a Celebrity Chef [Philly Mag]
• ‘Iron Chef’ Jose Garces’ NYC Restaurant Was Part of Ponzi Scheme, Suit Says [Eater NY]
• Iron Chef Jose Garces Is Being Sued for Underpaying Multiple Vendors [Eater]