George Calombaris opens up on collapse of restaurant empire

George Calombaris has revealed he turned to alcohol to cope with the stress of his restaurant empire collapsing but says he’s “bringing the band back together” for his latest venture.

George Calombaris has opened up on a ‘brutal’ time in his life. Picture: Nicole Cleary

George Calombaris has opened up on the “brutal” times surrounding the collapse of his restaurant empire when he became a “poster boy” for underpaying workers.

The former MasterChef judge said he drank excessively and cried a lot after his downfall when he self-reported to the Fair Work Ombudsman two years ago.

He said he intended to create change within the industry but after paying back $7.8m in wages and superannuation, and being fined $200,000, his world came crashing down.

“At that point my group, we were going through a transition where there were some partners leaving and a new partner came on board and he came from the corporate world,’’ Calombaris said on the You Cannot Be Serious podcast with Sam Newman and Don Scott.

“We were going from a $30m business to a $50m business and expanding.

“We found there were some discrepancies in the way we were paying a level 2 or a level 3. A uniform allowance, probably some stuff we weren’t sharp enough.

“We sat there and ran the numbers and said, ‘Right we’re looking at about three to four million bucks to pay back to these staff members. Let’s do it, done, no problem’.

George Calombaris said he became the ‘poster boy’ for wage theft. Picture: Tim Carrafa

“At that point I’m in the media, I’m known, we should just come out. We went to Fair Work and said, ‘guys we found these issues, we’re paying up, every cent, but we also want to give it to a journalist to talk the story and hopefully that will get everyone else in an industry that is rife with payments under tables and stuff like that, for everyone to pull their socks up’.

“That turned. That became George Calombaris the wage thief. George Calombaris in his Toorak mansion living the big life, blah blah. It went disgustingly bad.”

“Unfortunately, the name George Calombaris, when it was high everyone was flying and loved it, everyone wanted to be around it, but when they did that list I became this poster boy as the wage thief, it punched us right in the face.”

Calombaris said after the restaurant collapse and being charged with assault following an altercation with a fan at a Melbourne Victory game, he was at a low point. He said the fan had made a sledge about his mother.

“It was brutal and I cried a lot,’’ he said.

“I drank a lot, I really did. When I drink I don’t get aggressive but when I drink excessively like I did in that period, I’m an emotional wreck.

“I probably should have opened up more. I was trying to fix it all behind a closed door and I was literally fist-punching myself internally and emotionally.”

LEAVING MASTERCHEF

Calombaris said the underpayment scandal wasn’t the reason he and fellow MasterChef judges Matt Preston and Gary Mehigan left MasterChef after 11 years.

Preston and Mehigan then joined Channel 7 but Calombaris wasn’t wanted.

“I think the three of us were an incredible package,’’ he said.

“We, sometimes including myself, we’d think we’re bigger than each other. That’s a lesson we all should learn from it. When it’s good just celebrate it and respect it, and know there’s also an ending time on things.”

Former MasterChef hosts Gary Mehigan, Matt Preston and George Calombaris.

He added: “In hindsight we should have all just parted ways with hugs.

“We have 11 f---ing amazing years. What I’ve learnt is, gee TV, it’s a dog-eat-dog business.

“Channel 7 wanted us over but then my shit hit the fan with the restaurants and at the time the boss said we don’t want George, he’s on the nose. We were going to do something new.

“Seven came over and they were knocking the door down and the boys made the decision to go to Seven and Seven didn’t want me.

“I get Channel 7, this guy is smelly, he’s on the nose. I’m not having a go at Seven.

“I think they (Preston and Mehigan) did what they needed to do for themselves and their families.”

George Calombaris on The Masked Singer show. Picture: Ten/Instagram

Calombaris said he misses TV and dipped his toe back in the water with a recent appearance on The Masked Singer.

He has just taken up a new role with Hotel Sorrento at the suggestion of Eddie McGuire.

“The great Eddie McGuire, who I absolute adore — you talk about when the shit hits the fan, he’s the first one to get on the phone,’’ Calombaris said.

“When it all happened, two young kids going to school, a wife and living in a court in Toorak where you couldn’t leave without paps, people, being followed.

“We were walking around Portsea and he said why don’t you do a pop up in the summer time. He said I want you to meet the Pitt family, they own the Hotel Sorrento, so we met and one thing has led to another, they’re a beautiful family and owned the pub for 41 years, they’re spending a lot of money redeveloping and adding a lot of layers to this thing.

“Pool bars, hotels, signature restaurants, basically I’ve come on board as their culinary and creative person.

“I’m really excited. I’m at a point in my life where I want to be the coach not the captain.

“I want to write the music not sing the song.

“I’m coming in bringing a lot of my old crew back, bringing the band back together and supporting the already great team they’ve got, we’re going to end up with about 250 team members out there.”