Acclaimed Boston chef and restaurateur Barbara Lynch is facing a drunk driving charge after a crash in Gloucester earlier this week.
Police say that Lynch, 53, crashed into the rear of a parked truck early Tuesday morning, according to the Gloucester Times.
Lynch lives in Annisquam, a waterfront neighborhood in Gloucester, and runs multiple renowned Boston restaurants including No. 9 Park, Sportello and Menton.
She told police that she was driving home from her work in Boston and “did not know what happened,” the Times reports. Police said her car slammed into the other vehicle around 4:30 a.m.
Lynch reportedly told police that she had had “a few glasses of wine with dinner” before driving home and also that she may have fallen asleep at the wheel in the moments prior to the incident.
She did fail a series of field sobriety tests and had a blood-alcohol level of 0.159 when police at the scene administered a breath alcohol test, according to the Times.
Both vehicles were severely damaged and Lynch’s car had to be towed from the scene. There were no injuries.
Lynch said that she felt sorry for what happened, according to the Times. A representative for Lynch shared a comment with Eater confirming the accident.
“There was damage to her car and a parked vehicle, and Chef was shaken up, but no one else was injured,” the representative said. “For that, she is extremely grateful however still understandably upset. As details are gathered, we’ll be able to provide more information.”
In April, Lynch was the subject of a New York Times article detailing her rise from scrappy Southie native to nationally acclaimed, James Beard award-winning chef. In 2014, she was the second woman to be awarded the James Beard Foundation Award for Outstanding Restaurateur.
