Iron Chef star Ming Tsai has come under fire for joking that he ‘roofied’ another female chef before he brushed off the MeToo Movement by saying ‘bad boys get the press.’
Tsai, 59, joined fellow Boston chef Irene Shiang Li on WBUR’s radio show Curated Cuisine, where the pair had a chat in front of a sold-out audience about how their restaurants are operating post-COVID-19 and his new business venture Mings Bings.
While there, the Ivy-educated chef made a now-viral joke about drugging his fellow chef’s water after taking a sip of his own.
‘Did you roofie me? You should have. I have roofied you,’ he said.
Li laughed at his joke, but made no further comment about the date rape drug. However, she later promoted that portion of the interview on her Instagram, writing: ‘Some standout moments from my hour-long interview with celebrity chef Ming Tsai.’
Ming Tsai, 59, (left) jokingly asked fellow Boston Chef Irene Shiang Li (right): ‘Did you roofie me? You should have. I have roofied you,’ after he took a drink of water during an interview in February
Li laughed at his joke, but made no further comment about the date rape drug
The pair went on to talk about the MeToo Movement and the abuse suffered in the Boston restaurant industry.
The Yale and Cornell-educated chef took a moment before responding: ‘Have we not been talking about it enough?’ before they brought up disgraced Boston Chef Mario Batali, who faced $exual misconduct allegations, but was found not guilty.
‘We had the Batali case here, but he’s, you know, we don’t claim him,’ Li, who won the Leadership Award from the James Beard Foundation, said.
Tsai nervously joked around while he fumbled for an answer before landing on: ‘I hope every day [people are held accountable]. I think I can probably say all my chef buddies around the country…none of us are like that.
Iron Chef star Ming Tsai is under fire for joking that he ‘roofied’ female Boston chef
‘It’s like social media, the bad boys get the press.’
He went on to claim that it’s ‘not the whole industry’ and not every male chef is a ‘son of a b****.’
Li (pictured) won the Leadership Award from the James Beard Foundation last year
She later promoted that portion of the interview on her Instagram, writing: ‘Some standout moments from my hour-long interview with celebrity chef Ming Tsai’
Tsai was quickly hit with criticism for the now-viral moment, including from Li’s husband, who wrote: ‘Nothing like watching a grown man who is old enough to be my dad make a joke about slipping my wife a roofie during a public interview’
‘It’s not,’ he told Li. ‘I think we just have to lead by example because it’s the next generation that’s going to actually make the change. The damage has been done by my generation, so to speak…
‘And thank God, women are not taking s*** anymore.’
Despite pointing out that the restaurant industry is becoming less male-dominated, critics were unhappy with his comments.
Li’s own husband Chris Ward commented on his wife’s post, writing: ‘Nothing like watching a grown man who is old enough to be my dad make a joke about slipping my wife a roofie during a public interview.’
Another person, Korsha Wilson, who claimed to have had an encounter with Tsai, wrote: ‘Surprised this man is still being given a mic [to be honest]. As someone who had the misfortune of being a hostess when this man was drunk at an event, I can tell you that him stuttering about MeToo is him trying to cover his tracks.’
Tsai apologized on Instagram shortly after and said he recognized that ‘we all have a responsibility to create a safe and inclusive environment where everyone feels heard and respected’
Others said the interview was ‘disappointing’ and ‘frustrating’ and that he only offered a ‘blanket apology’ for the abuse experience in the industry.
The criticism quickly made Tsai release a statement on his Instagram, saying he ‘made some comments I regret, including those about the MeToo Movement.’
‘It was not my intention to be insensitive or dismissive of the experiences of those who have been affected by sexual misconduct,’ he said. ‘I’ve always built my teams with women. The best chefs in the country today are woman. My Executive Chef and Chief Marketing Officer at MingsBings are women.
‘In every restaurant or business I’ve run, I’ve always had a zero tolerance policy on any type of harassment. I recognize that we all have a responsibility to create a safe and inclusive environment where everyone feels heard and respected.’
Tsai gained fame after appearing on Iron Chef in 2005, where he challenged Bobby Flay and won
The Blue Ginger owner has ‘committed to being more mindful and respectful of the topics that are important to others’ and reiterated that he was ‘truly sorry.’
Tsai, who has a degree in mechanical engineering, opened his first restaurant in 1998 in Wellesley, Massachusetts – 30 minutes outside of Boston – called Blue Ginger, specializing in East-West Cuisine.
In 2002, the chef was honored with the Best Chef Northeast award by the James Beard Foundation.
In 2005, he challenged Bobby Flay on Iron Chef and won.
