Merivale dropped from Good Food Guide

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Merivale, Australia’s largest hospitality company, has been excluded from the Good Food Guide following claims it exploited workers, prioritised VIP treatment over staff safety and ignored claims of sexual harassment as it built a multibillion-dollar empire.

Sarah Norris, head of Good Food, said as a result of recent investigations by this masthead, Good Food and 60 Minutes, Merivale venues including Totti’s, Mr Wong, Mimi’s and Uccello have excluded themselves from being eligible for the upcoming edition of the Good Food Guide.

“Allegations against the billion-dollar company, which operates about 90 venues across NSW and Victoria, include, but are not limited to, putting staff in dangerous situations; not protecting the wellbeing of its staff; prioritising VIP treatment over staff safety, and abuse of power,” said Norris.

Merivale chief executive Justin Hemmes at his restaurant MuMu.

“Good Food stands by the reporting of this masthead and the statements of former and current staff. Merivale employs more than 5000 staff, and we acknowledge our response may impact those who strive towards a Good Food Guide hat as a benchmark of quality.”

Good Food is owned by Nine Entertainment, owner of this masthead.

The investigation revealed claims that Merivale underpaid staff, exploited women, encouraged them to have sex with customers, perpetuated sexual harassment and facilitated frequent drug use.

“The goal of the Guide is not to tell readers whether they should eat at a restaurant or not, but to provide them with more information to make their own decision,” said Norris.

“In 2025, for a business and its owner to be awarded a Good Food Guide hat and score, that discretion has broadened to exclude restaurants where there are serious and credible allegations that management is not providing a workspace – for all staff – free from harm and sexual harassment.”

Merivale, owned by billionaire Justin Hemmes, has denied the allegations.

In a statement, Merivale said for decades it had consistently delivered impressive venues. The company said it was proud of the thousands of staff who strive to offer the best to its customers.

“We do not require the validation of the Good Food Guide to continue to do so and thrive,” the company said.

Merivale accused this masthead and Good Food of making vexatious assertions which it claimed were investigated by Kate Eastman, SC, and were found to be unsubstantiated. The company said there have been no other adverse findings regarding those allegations.

Merivale has declined to publicly release the Eastman report and said it was subject to legal professional privilege.

“In contrast, SMH and Good Food’s publisher, Nine Entertainment, has been found by an independent report to have a workplace with systemic issues with abuse of power and authority, bullying, discrimination and sexual harassment,” Merivale said in a statement.

Nine publicly released its report into inappropriate workplace behaviour at the company last year.

Merivale previously had four restaurants with two hats in the guide, including Bert’s Bar & Brasserie, Fred’s, Mr. Wong and Mimi’s. It also had six establishments with one hat, including Bar Totti’s, Good Luck, Hotel Centennial, Ms.G’s, MuMu, Uccello, and Totti’s in Lorne, Victoria.

The company is also under investigation by the Fair Work Ombudsman.

Eight former Merivale chefs recruited from Mexico, including Rodrigo Zavaleta and Rodrigo Santos, claim they were overworked, underpaid and racially discriminated against while working for the hospitality group, which owns property worth an estimated $3 billion.

Last November, Merivale agreed to pay $19.25 million to more than 2800 current and former staff who alleged they were underpaid under an invalid employee enterprise agreement between December 2013 and December 2019.

The payment settled a five-year class action lawsuit launched by Adero Law in 2019 which alleged Merivale underpaid as many as 14,000 staff up to $129 million over six years. The hospitality group did not admit any wrongdoing.

In June, this masthead revealed allegations Merivale was still effectively forcing staff to work at least one day per week free under a company-wide policy initiated from at least July 2024 and threatened to “pull lists of staff members” who were not hitting those hours.

In response, Merivale’s lawyers said its “employees receive pay that meets or exceeds the relevant award entitlements”.

Merivale is the second major hospitality company to be dropped from the Good Food Guide.

The Swillhouse group, which runs high-profile restaurants including Caterpillar Club, Le Foote and Restaurant Hubert, was excluded last year after this masthead revealed claims of sexual harassment, widespread drug use and employees being marginalised for reporting sexual assaults.

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