The late celebrity chef’s estate alleges former partners moved quickly after his death to take over restaurants, trademarks and other assets in a multimillion-dollar dispute.
A month after The Press Democrat first reported the transfer of late celebrity chef Michael Chiarello’s flagship restaurant to his longtime business partners, new court filings reveal a bitter legal fight over control of his culinary empire.
Chiarello’s estate, along with two management companies he founded, filed a lawsuit Monday in Napa County Superior Court, accusing three of his former business associates — Richard “Rich” Frank, John Hansen and Peter Crowley, a longtime paid adviser and co-manager of the restaurants — of scheming to take control of his restaurants, intellectual property and management companies within days of his unexpected death in October 2023.
Chiarello, a high-profile figure in the Napa Valley food and wine scene, opened Bottega Napa Valley in 2008. The Yountville restaurant became his flagship and remained under his majority ownership until he died at age 61 from complications related to an allergic reaction. He also founded Ottimo in Yountville and Coqueta in San Francisco, and created a broad portfolio of ventures including a wine label, a retail business and several television cooking shows.
In June, Frank and Hansen announced they had acquired full ownership of Bottega. Both had been minority partners in the business since its inception. Frank, a former Disney executive and the owner of Frank Family Vineyards in Calistoga, and Hansen, a Rome-based hospitality investor, said they planned to continue Chiarello’s culinary legacy alongside executive chef Alex Espinoza, who joined Bottega in 2021 after working at Chiarello’s Tra Vigne in St. Helena.
But in this week’s court filing, Chiarello’s estate alleges the men took advantage of the chef’s death to pressure his family into relinquishing control of the restaurants and related assets at below-market value. Chiarello’s shares in the restaurants — ranging from 60% to 75%, according to the complaint — are now held by his estate, with his wife, Eileen Gordon, serving as trustee and their four children as beneficiaries.
The complaint alleges Frank, Hansen and Crowley worked to withhold business records, misrepresented ownership and even gave themselves unauthorized cash payouts with the help of a longtime company executive. It also claims the three made false statements to employees and landlords, and deliberately cut off key revenue streams to financially pressure the estate.
The estate estimates those actions have caused “no less than tens of millions of dollars” in damages, according to the filing.
The lawsuit includes messages between the men that the estate says show their intent. In one March 2024 exchange, Frank allegedly told Crowley they should make things “as hard as possible” for Gordon. When Gordon objected during an April video call, saying the men had no legal right to purchase the restaurants outright, Frank reportedly replied, “We’re buying these restaurants.” Hansen then allegedly told her, “Rich gets what he wants, and what he wants are these restaurants.” Crowley later told Gordon, “Rich Frank is a bully,” according to the filing.
The complaint also accuses Frank of directing restaurant staff to stop serving Chiarello Family Vineyards wines — part of the estate — and instead sell wines from his own label.
In May 2024, Frank, Hansen and Crowley filed their own lawsuit, claiming a right to acquire Chiarello’s holdings. Through arbitration, they secured control of Bottega and certain intellectual property, including trademarks.
Now, the estate is seeking monetary damages and a court declaration that the management entities created by Chiarello — Gruppo Chiarello Inc. and Solo IO LLC — still hold valid contracts with the restaurants and his intellectual property.
Attorneys for both sides did not respond to requests for comment Wednesday.
Chiarello opened his first restaurant, Tra Vigne, in St. Helena in 1987 and went on to become one of Napa Valley’s most recognized culinary figures. He was known for house-made pastas, Italian-inspired seasonal menus and a string of national TV appearances. He won a Daytime Emmy for his Food Network show “Easy Entertaining” and hosted series on PBS, Fine Living and the Cooking Channel.
In 2016, two women who worked at Coqueta sued Chiarello and his restaurant group for sexual harassment. He denied the allegations, and the suit was later settled.
You can reach Staff Writer Edward Booth at 707-521-5281 or edward.booth@pressdemocrat.com.
