Italian Chef Sacked for Refusing Pineapple on Pizza Loses Bid to Get His Job Back in Australia

Davide Tamburella, the Italian former head chef of La Costa, an Italian restaurant in Brisbane, Queensland, Australia, refused to put pineapple on pizza on the grounds that to do so was 'an insult to his culture'. After performance concerns including that refusal were raised with him, he was sacked, and Australia's Fair Work Commission has now dismissed his bid to get his job back.

A Fair Work Commission ruling filed on Tuesday heard that Tamburella was sacked from La Costa on 20 May, a fortnight after he was called before his boss, Elliot Ingram, 'to address performance concerns'. Among those concerns was the Italian chef's refusal to put pineapple on pizza.

La Costa billed itself as an elegant slice of Italy in Fortitude Valley, with sea foam-green and white decor, exposed brick columns and 'classic Italian dishes' served atop European oak tables, promising diners they had 'made it to the Italian Riviera'. The restaurant is now closed, though its website still carries that description.

The commission heard from Ingram that a large function booking, spending in excess of $15,000, had come in, and the person paying for the whole event said he needed ham and pineapple pizza. Tamburella acknowledged that this was the third time he had refused this direction, instead asking Ingram to 'check how important it is for Italians not to put pineapple on a pizza'.

Ingram said the divisive tropical pizza was not his own first choice either, but that 17 years in hospitality and more than a decade of running restaurants had taught him to 'pick your battles'. He added that ham and pineapple pizza had previously appeared on the restaurant's children's menu.

Tamburella alleged that he was terminated in contravention of the Fair Work Act, with his dismissal partly motivated by a workplace injury he suffered after he struck a metal handrail, fracturing his right hand in two places.

Commissioner Jennifer Hunt dismissed Tamburella's general protections application on the grounds that it was filed too late and did not meet the criteria for exceptional circumstances, ending his bid to return to the job.

The hearing also heard that the refusal proved costly for both men. Tamburella was more than three years into a 186 visa process, an employer-sponsored pathway to permanent residency. Ingram said he waited as long as he legally could to notify authorities that he was no longer hiring Tamburella, in the hope that the visa application would be approved before he was legally obliged to withdraw his sponsorship. It was not, meaning Tamburella will have to start the 186 process again.

La Costa closed in July when its lease expired, with Ingram citing the high cost of doing business in Fortitude Valley.

Tamburella was contacted for comment. He is now employed at another Italian restaurant — and pineapple does not appear on its menu.