Davide Tamburella has lost his bid to return to La Costa after the Fair Work Commission dismissed his case over the La Costa restaurant Brisbane chef dismissal. He was sacked on 20 May after refusing to put pineapple on pizza, a dispute that also ended his attempt to keep an employer-sponsored 186 visa pathway alive.
The commission, through Jennifer Hunt, found his general protections application was filed too late and did not meet the criteria for exceptional circumstances. That left the former head chef without the job and without the option of using the ruling to force his return.
Davide Tamburella and Elliot Ingram
A fortnight before the dismissal, Tamburella had been hauled before Elliot Ingram to address performance concerns. One of those concerns was his refusal to put pineapple on pizza. Tamburella said that was “an insult to his culture,” and he acknowledged it was the third time he had refused the direction.
Ingram drew a link between the dispute and a large booking at the restaurant. He said, “We had a large function come in, and they were spending in excess of $15,000, and the guy paying for the whole thing says: ‘Look, I need to get some ham and pineapple pizza,’” and added, “Do I go and buy a ham and pineapple pizza? It’s probably not my absolute favourite,” before saying, “But I’m not going to turn my nose up at it, that’s for sure. And, look, we have had ham and pineapple pizza on the kid’s menu previously.”
Jennifer Hunt and the Fair Work Commission
Tamburella alleged that his termination contravened the Fair Work Act. He also said his dismissal was partly motivated by a workplace injury after he struck a metal handrail and fractured his right hand in two places. Hunt rejected the application on timing grounds, rather than testing the underlying dispute over pizza or injury.
That procedural ruling mattered because a missed filing deadline can stop a general protections case before the commission reaches the merits. In this case, the decision means Tamburella did not clear the threshold needed to keep pressing for his job back.
La Costa in July
Tamburella was also more than three years into a 186 visa process, so the dismissal carried a second consequence beyond losing work. If he wants to continue that pathway, he would have to start the process again.
La Costa closed in July when its lease expired. Its website had described the venue as a slice of Italy in Brisbane’s Fortitude Valley, promising diners they would feel like they had made it to the Italian Riviera.
