The renowned chef accused of assaulting a female relative in his West Palm Beach home is facing new criminal charges after authorities alleged he violated a court order by attempting to contact his accuser.
Investigators said Jacob Bickelhaupt — the owner of Konro, Palm Beach County’s first Michelin-starred restaurant — made two phone calls from the county jail on June 5 seeking help from the woman he is accused of assaulting.
According to a new arrest report, Bickelhaupt left voicemail messages on a business line in which he asked the woman to contact the Public Defender’s Office and request that a no-contact order against him be rescinded. Circuit Judge Daliah Weiss declared him indigent after his first arrest.
He also asked the woman to help him find someone to pay a percentage of his $90,000 bail.
“I love you so much,” the arrest report quotes Bickelhaupt as saying on one of the messages.
Police had arrested Bickelhaupt, 41, on June 2 on aggravated battery and domestic battery charges after alleging he repeatedly punched and kicked a woman in his home, leaving her with two black eyes, and swelling and bruising on her face.
Investigators said the woman attempted to leave the state after the attack by taking a flight from Palm Beach International Airport, but ended up in a West Palm Beach hospital after she suffered a seizure while waiting at the airport’s ticket counter.
A business partner of the accuser called police and informed them of phone messages, on which Bickelhaupt also reminded the woman that “I can’t do the restaurant” while in jail and that he might be in custody “for a very long time … maybe a year” if she did not help him.
Bickelhaupt, 41, remains in the Palm Beach County Jail. Bail in his two arrests totals $99,000. As a policy, the public defender’s office does not comment on open cases.
Meals at Michelin-starred Konro cost hundreds per person
Bickelhaupt opened Konro in 2023 In April 2024, the Michelin Guide awarded Konro its star. Set off South Dixie Highway near the Norton Museum of Art, it is a menu-free restaurant with 10 counter seats and a three-figure-per-person price tag for admission. It does not appear to have opened since Bickelhaupt’s arrest.
Bickelhaupt previously ran 42 Grams, a popular restaurant in Chicago, where he also faced an allegation of domestic violence involving a different woman.
In June 2017, Chicago police arrested him on charges that he threw the woman to the ground and struck her in the head with a bottle, according to multiple published reports.
He pleaded guilty to a charge of simple battery and was ordered to undergo mandatory drug and alcohol testing, complete a domestic violence program and pay fines. Shortly after the Chicago arrest, Bickelhaupt closed 42 Grams, which at one time also earned Michelin-star status.
Julius Whigham II is a criminal justice and public safety reporter for The Palm Beach Post. You can reach him at jwhigham@pbpost.com and follow him on X, the platform formerly known as Twitter, at @JuliusWhigham. Help support our work: Subscribe today.
This article originally appeared on Palm Beach Post: Police: Star chef defied no-contact order in domestic battery case, asked woman for bail
Reporting by Julius Whigham II, Palm Beach Post / Palm Beach Post
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
