Ina Garten Denies Martha Stewart’s Claim About Their Fallout as Fans Accuse the Food Network Chef of Abandoning Her Friend
Renowned chef Ina Garten is setting the record straight about the ending of her friendship with Martha Stewart.
On Dec. 5 the television cook and author did an in-person Q&A with People, where she was asked to give her take on why she and Stewart are no longer pals.
Stewart initially claimed Garten abandoned their friendship when Stewart went to prison,, but Garten claims that isn’t true.
In front of a live audience, the former Food Network chef responded to Stewart’s claims, stating, “Well let’s just say her story isn’t exactly accurate. And you know that was 25 years ago. I think it’s time to let it go.”
A friendship between Garten and Stewart blossomed in the 1990s. In fact, Stewart was a big part of the reason why the “Barefoot Contessa” became as successful as she did. In the year 1990, after purchasing a home a little south of Garten’s, Stewart published her first issue of “Martha Stewart Living,” which included a write-up about Garten.
Stewart was also friends with the head of Crown Publishing, which proved beneficial when Garten sought to publish “The Barefoot Contessa Cookbook.”
In 2000, Stewart’s production company gave Garten a show for Food Network called “Someone’s in the Kitchen with Ina.” But unfortunately, due to a rift with the television crew while filming, the show was cut. Garten went back to her roots and published 13 more cookbooks with Crown.
As for her relationship with Stewart, Garten claims it was simply distance. Stewart was spending more time at her property in Bedford, New York, which led to them losing touch with each other.
Stewart, however, believes their relationship became strained when she was sentenced to five months in prison in 2004 for lying about a stock sale.
She told The New Yorker, “When I was sent off to Alderson Prison, she stopped talking to me. I found that extremely distressing and extremely unfriendly.” Stewart’s publicist called back to give a statement on her behalf, claiming she was “not bitter at all and there’s no feud.”
Now that Garten’s given her response, fans are left to decide which television personality they believe is right.
Some felt Stewart was telling the truth. One person wrote on People’s website, “I believe Martha. Martha gave her her start and when Martha went to jail she abandoned her. Moving to a neighboring state does not prevent continuing a valued friendship.”
A Stewart supporter on E! News’ Facebook page said, “Ina was a trader. She’s better off not being friends with her.”
On Instagram, a few made reference to Stewart’s alleged mean streak writing, “Martha can hold a grudge” and “Martha doesn’t let anything go.”
Others supported Garten’s response on People’s Instagram clip. One fan said, “Martha was telling the truth! But Ina handled herself well and was respectful.” Another added, “Not everyone likes everyone. Ina is right, move on.”
Calling her bluff, a third added, “C’mon you just don’t want to hang with jail birds. There I fixed it. I love Marthas documentary.”
After her 2004 conviction, Stewart served five months in prison as discussed in her Netflix documentary that hit streaming platforms last month. “Martha” highlights the lifestyle impresario’s rise to fame, her money-making friendship with Snoop Dogg, as well as painful personal details about her marriage to ex-husband, Andrew Stewart.
