“An insult to his culture” — that is how Italian chef Davide Tamburella described pineapple on pizza, the stance that cost him his job at a Brisbane restaurant, the BBC reported.
Tamburella refused three times to put the sweet fruit on his dough at La Costa in the Queensland state capital, according to the broadcaster’s report. Management dismissed him, and when he challenged the firing before Australia’s workplace tribunal, his appeal was rejected because he had filed it too late.
Three Refusals at La Costa in Brisbane
The dispute played out at La Costa restaurant in Brisbane, the BBC wrote. Tamburella declined to distribute pineapple on pizza on three separate occasions, telling the outlet the topping was an insult to his culture. His refusal did not go over well with management, and the chef lost his job.
Tamburella then turned to Australia’s labor court and complained of what he saw as an unjustified dismissal, the report said. During the proceedings it emerged that the firing was apparently not connected to the pineapple alone: Tamburella had also used profanity and vented his frustration at the workplace, according to the BBC.
Court Rejects Appeal Filed Too Late
Ultimately, the cook’s legal challenge failed. The tribunal dismissed his objection because he had submitted it after the deadline, the BBC reported. The restaurant’s head chef told the Daily Mail that there was more to the story than just a pizza topping.
Pineapple on pizza, a topping that has sparked one of the internet’s longest-running food debates has landed an Italian chef in trouble. Davide Tamburella, an Italian chef at Brisbane's La Costa Restaurant and Bar in Australia, was dismissed after repeatedly refusing to prepare… pic.twitter.com/g5bicBGaZ7
New Kitchen Without Pineapple on the Menu
For the pizza maker, life goes on. According to his LinkedIn profile, Tamburella now works at a different restaurant in Brisbane — one where no pineapple appears on the menu.
Questions Readers Ask About the Case
Was the firing really only about pineapple? No. The BBC reported that Tamburella also used swear words and let his frustration out at work, and the restaurant’s head chef told the Daily Mail there was more to the story than the topping.
Why did the court reject his appeal? The tribunal threw out his challenge because he filed it too late, according to the BBC’s report of the proceedings.
Where does Tamburella work now? His LinkedIn profile shows he moved to another Brisbane restaurant, where pineapple is not on the menu.
Italian chef Davide Tamburella was fired from Brisbane’s La Costa Restaurant and Bar after refusing to put pineapple on pizza for customers — not once, but three times over four years. He considered the topping "an insult to his culture" and even asked his boss to look into how… pic.twitter.com/I3grMXmVpq
“There’s more to this story than just a pizza topping,” the head chef of La Costa told the Daily Mail.