People
Star chef Christian Jürgens released after allegations
Star chef Christian Jürgens has been released. photo
© Jörg Carstensen/ dpa
For years, chef Christian Jürgens only went up. As one of the few chefs in Germany, he has cooked three stars. But now he is confronted with allegations from former employees.
Star chef Christian Jürgens (54) has been released from running his gourmet restaurant “Überfahrt” on Lake Tegernsee. This was announced by the Althoff Hotels on Friday, in whose hotel the restaurant is located. The “Spiegel” had previously reported allegations by former employees against the three-star chef for inappropriate behavior. According to “Spiegel”, Jürgens rejected the allegations as “untrue” through a lawyer. The events described did not happen “at any point in time”.
The statement from Althoff Hotels said: “First of all, we would like to make it clear that the allegations continue to shake us. With effect from May 5, 2023, we have therefore decided to release Christian Jürgens.” The allegations must now be “examined in detail and clearly clarified”.
The hotel chain announced that a law firm had been commissioned to investigate the allegations. “As a company, we fundamentally condemn attacks of the kind described here or of a similar kind. The well-being of all our employees and education are now the priority.”
Jürgens is one of the best-known and most successful chefs in Germany. His career took him from his native town of Unna in North Rhine-Westphalia to Munich in the late 1980s via his training in Bad Homburg. There he worked at Feinkost Käfer, then at “Tantris” and after stations in Aschau and on Sylt finally ended up in Eckart Witzigmann’s “Aubergine”. The 54-year-old has been head chef at the Überfahrt gourmet restaurant in Rottach-Egern am Tegernsee since 2008. It was only at the beginning of April that the Michelin Guide awarded Jürgens and his restaurant three stars again.