Is the gourmet restaurant Äponem in turmoil? No, insists Gaby Benicio, who now holds the reins of the establishment created in Vailhan, in the premises of the former presbytery, in 2018. A starred establishment a year later and crowned in 2023 with the Michelin sommelier prize. Amélie Darvas, the chef, who left the premises, has just filed a complaint against her partner.
“I fell off my chair when I learned that Amélie was filing a complaint against me, Gaby Benicio explained. Especially since I learned about it through the press. I don’t think it’s very delicate.” Gaby Bénicio is now alone at the helm of the Äponem restaurant and inn in Vailhan. An establishment that she created in 2018 with her partner Amélie Darvas. Since last March, the team has been operating without a chef at the head of the team. And for the past few days, it’s been an earthquake…
“I have no complaints”
In an article titled “Why I filed a criminal complaint after leaving the restaurant Ä“ponm”our colleagues from Figaro were taking stock of the situation. According to them, a complaint for “Abuse of weakness, forgery and use of forgery, misuse of corporate assets and failure to consult partners was filed on June 11 before the Béziers public prosecutor’s office.”
But, when contacted, the public prosecutor of Béziers, Raphaël Balland, stated: “I have not received this complaint to date. Perhaps it has not yet been registered, if it has actually been sent.” Since May 15, Amélie Darvas has been dismissed from her position as general manager of the SAS that manages Aponem. However, she has kept her shares as an equal shareholder with Gaby Benicio. The question now arises of a Michelin-starred restaurant without a chef. On this point, Gaby is clear.
Why did Amélie Darvas file a complaint against her partner?
Contacted by telephone, Amélie Darvas’ lawyers had to call back the editorial staff of Free Midi during the day. They didn’t. Amélie Darvas explained to our colleagues at Le Figaro that she had left Äponem because “I was no longer in line with the values claimed by Gaby Benicio. I worked hard and no longer felt supported. I was ousted from our company and I began to discover anomalies in the management. I wanted to negotiate the conditions of my departure. I was never answered. The more time passed, the more anomalies I discovered. The team in place can reproduce my cuisine, I trained them. It is always the dishes that I created that are still served at Äponem. Gaby attracts the light but has no skills in the matter.”
“I am legitimate”
“I am legitimate in our kitchen and in my role”,support Gaby Benicio. “I already ran our restaurant when we were in Paris. It lasted more than six months. It is very common to see sommeliers leave for the kitchen. It is not something very serious because we work differently from others. Here, everyone is important. We did not work around the ego of a chef but all together. This system was my life conviction and today more than ever. The cuisine of tomorrow is linked to well-being, to delicacy. I believe in it enormously because the human must be at the center of everything“, Gaby Benicio insists again.
Since 2022, a new work model had been implemented at the Äponem restaurant. Everyone had the same salary, was fed, housed and laundered and only worked three and a half days a week. A year after the opening, in 2019, Amélie Darvas obtained a Michelin star. And in 2023 it was the consecration for Gaby Benicio who received the sommelier prize from the same guide.
“I want to explain myself”
“I’m only waiting for one thing, assure Gaby. I want to explain myself to the courts, but I don’t know exactly what I’m being accused of. The journalist told me. I didn’t know. I have nothing to hide. Nothing to fear. Amélie had access to all the accounts. She saw everything. I’m really looking forward to shedding light on all this to move forward. Our restaurant has never closed and that’s my daily mission. To work, to work again. Today, we are more united than ever and that’s very important for the team and the customers of our establishment.”
