MasterChef finalist Adam Handling’s online rant at customer who left bad review on TripAdvisor
The review branded the restaurant "overpriced" and "overhyped"
A CELEBRITY chef has been forced to apologise after calling a customer an "imbecile" in response to their negative TripAdvisor review.
Adam Handling, best known for his appearance on BBC's Celebrity MasterChef: The Professionals and Great British Menu, has since branded the comments about his restaurant, The Frog, "unfair, frustrating and personal".
The review of the restaurant, in Shoreditch, London, was left by a man identified as "Piotr P" - who slammed the "overpriced" and "overhyped" restaurant, writing the food was "average" and "either bland or too salty".
Meanwhile, he also criticised the service, claiming his table's meals did not arrive at the same time.
Handling's outrageous response, which has since been deleted, appeared to come from Guest Relations Manager "Lindsey J" - but the award-winning chef has since admitted it was posted by him.
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He wrote: "You are the prime example of an imbecile. If you think that we are over priced you lead a very sad life [sic]."
He added: "Please never come back or for that matter stick in McDonald's."
Speaking to , Handling expressed his regret. He said: "In hindsight I wouldn’t have written this response at all, and I have since apologised for my use of language to the person concerned.
"I am so passionate about [cooking] and so determined to make the hours I put into it result in happy diners in my restaurant [so] when I get a review such as this one, that passion can bubble over."
He also spoke out on Twitter, writing: "In life everyone will s*** on you... Britain loves failure - it's a great talking point. Have to admit, having, @TheFrogE1 is making me stronger,"
Since the incident, the Dundee-born chef has continued to respond to customers' reviews, and invites those with criticism to approach restaurant staff so they can attempt to deal with it straightaway.