A 28-year-old woman says celebrity chef Mario Batali forcibly kissed her and groped her in a Boston restaurant when she asked for a selfie

Getty Images / Mark Von Holden

• Natali Tene, 28, claims Mario Batali forcibly kissed her and groped her in a Boston restaurant in 2017.
• In a lawsuit against the celebrity chef she claims Batali groped her as she tried to take a selfie with him.
• The suit filed Wednesday in Superior Court in Boston seeks unspecified damages for "severe emotional distress" including anxiety and self-doubt.
• Several other women have previously come forward to allege sexual misconduct by Batali.

A Massachusetts woman claims that Mario Batali forcibly kissed her and groped her in a Boston restaurant in 2017, according to a lawsuit she filed against the celebrity chef.

The suit alleges that Natali Tene, 28, spotted Batali at Towne Stove and Spirits in April 2017 and tried to take a photo, the Boston Herald reported.

The suit says Batali invited her to take a selfie with him then, without asking for permission, repeatedly kissed her face, rubbed her breasts, grabbed her buttocks and put his hands between her legs.

The suit filed Wednesday in Superior Court in Boston seeks unspecified damages for "severe emotional distress" including anxiety and self-doubt.

"Batali sexually assaulted our client in open view and without hesitation," Tene's lawyers said in a statement to the Herald. "He has shown no remorse. His actions cannot go unanswered."

The statement continued, according to Boston.com: "Nobody should ever be subjected to this type of conduct. As a fan of Mario Batali, all she wanted to do was innocently take a picture with him. Without warning, he then sexually assaulted her. Mario Batali's actions were humiliating and degrading."

Neither Batali nor his representatives immediately responded to emails for comment sent to his website and production company on Friday.

Several other women have previously come forward to allege sexual misconduct by Batali.

Two women have claimed Batali sexually assaulted them in two of his Manhattan restaurants, the Spotted Pig and Babbo.

The New York Police Department is still determining whether or not it will charge Batali over the claims, Deadline reported.

In New Orleans, two women have accused him of inappropriate touching.

Batali stepped away from the day-to-day operations of his restaurants in December 2017 after several sexual misconduct allegations from former employees surfaced.

He said he was "deeply sorry for any pain, humiliation or discomfort" he caused.