Celebrity chef Madison Cowan’s landlord claims he owes $73,700 in back rent.
The New York Postreports building owner Gus Sheha says the British-born cook, who starred on the Food Network’s Chopped and Iron Chef series before serving as a culinary council member for Food Bank For New York City, hasn’t paid rent on his one-bedroom Boerum Hill apartment for the past 28 months. Cowan’s monthly rent ranged from $2,700 to $2,750 over his two-year lease.
The Brooklyn landlord alleges that Cowan, who’s family has occupied the residence since October 2019, last paid his monthly rent in January 2020. Sheha accused Cowan of attempting to “beat the system,” claiming that he’s taken advantage of New York’s pandemic-driven moratorium on evictions.
“He leaves his house wearing a different fur every day,” Sheha told the outlet. “How broke can he be? If there was no COVID-19, I would have taken him to court two years ago to get him evicted.”
Since the moratorium expired on January 15, Sheha’s lawyer has sent Cowan a 90-day notice informing him he must leave the premises by May 1. And yet, Sheha has not yet heard anything from his tenant.
Sheha says his last communication with the celebrity chef was back in August, when Cowan said the pandemic “negatively impact[ed]” his “income and bottom line.”
