Palm breach battle
A LEGAL war over the Palm Beach, Fla., outpost of swanky Upper East Side eatery La Goulue is boiling over. The restaurant’s owner, Jean Denoyer, has filed a counterclaim against an investor whom he paints in legal papers as a savvy banker that schemed to seize control and push him out. We previously reported that investor C. Edward Carter sued Denoyer last month in Palm Beach Circuit Court. Carter alleged in his own spicy court documents that Denoyer “fraudulently” induced him into investing in the restaurant and further claimed that the restaurateur had “childlike public temper
tantrums,” made “snap horrible decisions” and “alienated” employees with his “insatiable ego.” Denoyer denies Carter’s claims in his response — and also fired back in his own counterclaim that it’s a case of the “pot calling the kettle black.” Denoyer’s court documents allege it was Carter who hatched a “fraudulent and cynical scheme . . . to seize control of La Goulue and drive its founder, Denoyer, out of a business that he has built over the past 50 years.” Denoyer claims Carter “intended to use his investment to gain control of La Goulue and the La Goulue brand, implement his own vision, dilute Denoyer and the other investors, and squeeze Denoyer out,” and that it was Carter who was “abusive and aggressive towards staff and customers.” He’s countersuing for breach of contract and other claims. Denoyer is being repped in the case by attorney Jonathan Minsker, who told Page Six: “Mr. Denoyer will not be bullied. He will fight to protect his good name and the La Goulue brand.” Carter’s attorney, Charles H. Lichtman, said of the counterclaim, “We laughed when we read it . . . We know our facts are accurate and our claims are well-founded, so we very much look forward to our day in court.”