By Leila Fujimori
An Oahu Circuit Court jury awarded $3.15 million to a former 22-year-old sous chef at a Honolulu fine–dining restaurant who claimed he was violently abused by its executive chef.
The lawsuit filed by
Andrew Debellis, who worked at Margotto Hawaii on Piikoi Street from Oct. 8 to Dec. 25, 2023, accused restaurant owner Robert
Kazutomo Hori of deliberately enabling the actions of Yohei Yagishita.
In its June 24 verdict, the jury awarded Debellis
$1.05 million in compensation and $2.1 million in
punitive damages.
The complaint says Yagishita repeatedly punched Debellis in the spine, ribs and shoulder, kicked him in the shin or hip, and punched and slapped his face on numerous occasions. His worst physical injury was a torn rotator cuff.
Debellis immediately and repeatedly reported the assaults to Hori, then to police, but no action was taken for what was 鈥100% criminal assault and battery,鈥 said his attorney, James DiPasquale.
He described it as bullying at its worst, with a grown man using 鈥渧iolence and fear over a younger, vulnerable employee, again and again, laughing while doing it.鈥
The lawsuit said the incidents took a heavy mental and emotional toll on the plaintiff, who suffered severe post-traumatic stress disorder, major depression, chronic anxiety, flashbacks and panic attacks. As a result, Debellis avoided social situations, withdrew from relationships and wanted to end his life, the complaint said. He was unable to work for over a year and is still in treatment while also suffering constant, debilitating pain.
The complaint named Yagishita as a defendant along with New Field Honolulu Inc., dba Margotto
Hawaii, and Hori, alleging
assault and battery, negligence, intentional infliction of emotional distress, workplace harassment, racial discrimination and negligent supervision.
According to DiPasquale, Yagishita, who was kept on at the restaurant for six months and received a
recommendation from Hori, left for Japan after he was served with the civil
Attorneys for New Field and Hori did not return Hono-lulu Star-Advertiser calls seeking comment on the judgment.
The restaurant, in a text message, said Yagishita
鈥渞eturned to Japan due to personal family matters.鈥
DiPasquale filed an entry of default for Yagishita鈥檚 failure to answer the complaint that was denied by the court without prejudice, meaning it can be filed in the future.
In its verdict, the jury found that Debellis sustained extreme emotional distress and that his injuries were caused by the willful misconduct of Hori. The panel also found that the restaurant owner intentionally or recklessly engaged in conduct in deliberate disregard of a high probability that Debellis would sustain extreme emotional distress, and that Hori鈥檚 conduct was outrageous and the legal cause of the plaintiff鈥檚 extreme emotional distress.
At trial, DiPasquale
told jurors Hori created a stressful and unsafe environment. The restaurant owner even testified, 鈥淚 might get arrested for this, but Chef Yohei was working all day, every day.鈥
Hori said Yagishita faced extreme stress in running a busy kitchen with high expectations, little support and no days off. He also admitted that he permitted the chef to drink alcohol during work hours.
According to the lawsuit,
Debellis was brought in to help but couldn鈥檛 speak or read Japanese, and was not given a translator. When Yagishita created a dish, Debellis was expected to copy it to perfection. On one
occasion when Debellis sought help with a recipe written in Japanese, Yagishita is alleged to have repeatedly struck him in the face.
The violent attacks culminated in the chef punching the sous chef three times in the face on Christmas Day 2023, causing Debellis to suffer a whiplash injury that led to an indefinite absence from work, the complaint said.
A text from Hori to Yagishita on Dec. 26, 2023, reminded the chef that 鈥減hysical violence in America is a crime,鈥 indicating the owner knew he had violent tendencies, according to the lawsuit. Additional evidence included a warning letter written by Hori to Yagishita that said the chef had yelled at a staff member and 鈥渂roke free from someone who was trying to restrain him.鈥
Debellis testified to the daily abuse he endured, including slaps, punches and kicks. He said Yagishita assaulted him because he couldn鈥檛 fill a plastic wrap tray fast enough, for a salad mistake he didn鈥檛 make, for plating errors and because he couldn鈥檛 read Japanese.
On his final day at work, Debellis said, he was punched three times for three mistakes: running out of cucumber, going next door to get one and running out of ice cream.
DiPasquale said Hori set the stage for the abuse by allowing a stressful environment and overlooking the chef鈥檚 nightly alcohol consumption despite his known violent tendencies. His management decisions created 鈥渁 highly probable and foreseeable risk of harm.鈥
Hori and restaurant General
Manager Eriko Naka-gawa were the only witnesses who testified for the defense, both denying they saw any abuse, DiPasquale said.
Debellis鈥檚 co-worker Henry Oh testified he witnessed a slap so loud he heard it in the dining area and also saw Yagishita punch his underling on the back of the shoulder, causing him to stagger, and on another occasion saw him deliver a martial arts-style kick to the leg.
Oh reported the incidents to Nakagawa, the general manager, and they were discussed at meetings with Hori.
Guests also witnessed or heard the violence in the very small restaurant, Oh said, with one asking, 鈥淒id he just hit that kid?鈥
Debellis, initially a happy, energetic people-pleaser and hard worker, grew unhappy and appeared ashamed and broken, according to Oh, who said Yagishita鈥檚 demeanor also changed due to stress and that he saw him frequently drinking.
Another co-worker, Andrew Heard, testified he saw the chef punch Debellis in the chest with a closed fist while plating food. Heard said he yelled, 鈥淐ut it out!鈥 and told Hori the chef 鈥渘eeded to stop hitting Andrew,鈥 and that it was completely unacceptable.
DiPasquale said Hori is a high-profile entrepreneur who opened Margotto e Baciare in Tokyo, known for its truffle dishes, in 2014 and the award-winning Margotto Hawaii in 2022.