Restaurateur Alan Yazbek pleads guilty over Nazi symbol
The disgraced boss of Nomad restaurant group Alan Yazbek has pleaded guilty to holding up a placard plastered with a swastika during a pro-Palestinian protest earlier this month.
Police & Courts
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A high-profile Australian restaurateur has pleaded guilty to displaying a Nazi symbol during a pro-Palestinian rally.
Alan Yazbek, who owns the exclusive Reine & La Rue on Collins St, Nomad Melbourne on Flinders Lane and Nomad Sydney, was charged with displaying a placard bearing a swastika at a protest in Sydney on October 6.
The protest was the subject of a high-visibility police operation amid heightened tensions one day before the anniversary of Hamas’ attack on southern Israel.
Police had alleged that Mr Yazbek displayed a sign with a swastika superimposed on the Israeli flag with the words “Stop Nazi Israel”.
He was charged with one count of knowingly displaying a Nazi symbol without a reasonable excuse.
In Downing Centre Local Court in New South Wales on Thursday, Mr Yazbek’s barrister Phillip English entered a plea of guilty.
Mr English handed up a folder containing what he described as “negative emails”, and noted his client’s case had attracted a lot of media attention.
Mr English told the court that Mr Yazbek was ready to be sentenced on Thursday however the matter was adjourned until later in the year.
Mr Yazbek will now appear before the court for sentencing on December 10.
He exited court surrounded by a large media scrum but did not answer questions.
It comes after his wife Rebecca Yazbek, who co-owns the up-market restaurants, said she was “furious” at her husband.
In a statement issued on Wednesday, she said her husband was “no longer involved in the management of the business”.
The incident has prompted a harsh backlash against the restaurant group.
The Australian Restaurant and Cafe Association, backed by hospitality heavyweights Chris Lucas and Neil Perry, confirmed it was moving to strip Nomad of its membership, the Herald Sun previously revealed.
Nine Entertainment, the publisher of the Good Food Guide, also said earlier this month that they could not recommend Yazbek’s Melbourne and Sydney restaurants.
French champagne house G.H. Mumm has withdrawn its lucrative partnership with restaurant Reine & La Rue.
Investment bank Goldman Sachs, law firm Arnold Bloch Leibler, global financial services provider Morgan Stanley and Telstra have also canned bookings at the fine dining hotspot.
It is understood at least one senior chef has also resigned from Nomad, but the reason for the departure is not yet clear.
Mr Yazbek apologised “unequivocally” for his actions at the demonstration, in a public statement issued earlier in October.
“I apologise unequivocally for my actions at the demonstration on Sunday where I carried a sign that is deeply offensive to the Jewish community,” he said.
Originally published as Restaurateur Alan Yazbek pleads guilty over Nazi symbol
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