Disgraced celebrity chef George Calombaris has spoken candidly about his spectacular fall from grace going from a judge on MasterChef to the 'poster boy for wage theft'. The 43-year-old restaurateur said he turned to the bottle and 'cried a lot' in the dark days after his hospitality company MAdE collapsed. The hospitality group in 2019 was ordered by the Fair Work Ombudsman to pay back workers $7.8 million after failing to give them penalty rates for years. Calombaris was personally hit with a $200,000 penalty for the wage rorts but always insisted the underpayments were simply a mistake he blamed on inexperience. When the matter was still being resolved in the courts in 2017 and his public profile plummeted, the Melbourne chef was charged with assault after shoving a 19-year-old fan at the 2017 A-League grand final in Sydney for heckling him. Disgraced celebrity chef George Calombaris has spoken candidly about his spectacular fall from grace going from a judge on MasterChef to the 'poster boy for wage theft' 'It was brutal and I cried a lot,' Calombaris said on the You Cannot Be Serious podcast with Sam Newman and Don Scott. 'I drank a lot, I really did. When I drink I don't get aggressive but when I drink excessively like I did in that period, I'm an emotional wreck. 'I probably should have opened up more. I was trying to fix it all behind a closed door and I was literally fist-punching myself internally and emotionally.' The discrepancy was first discovered by the company's accountants in 2015 when the company went from a '$30 million business to a $50 million business and expanding'. Calombaris claimed the confusion stemmed from not being 'sharp enough' on the numbers but said once they figured it out they immediately self-reported and came clean. 'We went to Fair Work and said, 'guys we found these issues, we're paying up, every cent, but we also want to give it to a journalist to talk the story,' he said. The 43-year-old restaurateur said he turned to the bottle and 'cried a lot' in the dark days after his hospitality company MAdE collapsed 'Hopefully that will get everyone else in an industry that is rife with payments under tables and stuff like that, for everyone to pull their socks up. 'That turned. That became George Calombaris the wage thief. George Calombaris in his Toorak mansion living the big life, blah blah. It went disgustingly bad. 'Unfortunately, the name George Calombaris, when it was high, everyone was flying and loved it, everyone wanted to be around it. 'But when they did that list I became this poster boy as the wage thief, it punched us right in the face.' Another crushing blow came when he was kicked off the prime time TV show he co-hosted for 11 years. Calombaris (left) booted from MasterChef after the wage theft scandal but judges Matt Preston (centre) and Gary Mehigan (right) stayed on MasterChef moved from Channel Ten to Seven along with fellow judges Matt Preston and Gary Mehigan, but because of the toxicity surrounding him, Calombaris wasn't invited. 'Channel Seven wanted us over but then my s**t hit the fan with the restaurants and at the time the boss said we don't want George, he's on the nose. We were going to do something new,' he said. 'Seven came over and they were knocking the door down and the boys made the decision to go to Seven and Seven didn't want me. 'I get Channel Seven, this guy is smelly, he's on the nose. I'm not having a go at Seven. 'I think they (Preston and Mehigan) did what they needed to do for themselves and their families.' Calombaris was personally hit with a $200,000 penalty for the wage rorts while his hospitality group was ordered by the Fair Work Ombudsman to pay back workers $7.8million Still craving the spotlight, Calombaris made a bizarre return to TV recently with an appearance on Channel Nine's The Masked Singer. This month it was also announced he's joining Hotel Sorrento on Victoria's Mornington Peninsula. 'Pool bars, hotels, signature restaurants, basically I've come on board as their culinary and creative person,' he said. 'I'm really excited. I'm at a point in my life where I want to be the coach not the captain.' EXCLUSIVE: George Calombaris' huge booze fire sale: Liquidators sell off everything from $20,000 bottles of wine and champagne to $2 Peronis as they try to pay his collapsed restaurant empire's $22MILLION debt By Daniel Piotrowski for Daily Mail Australia The administrators of George Calombaris' former restaurant empire have been forced into a booze fire sale to pay back some of the $22 million owed to creditors. The former MasterChef judge's MAdE Establishments business spectacularly folded in February with just $389 in the bank and owing staff $1.2million in wages and entitlements. Documents this week revealed that liquidator Korda Mentha put almost 8,000 bottles of alcohol from six of the company's restaurants up for auction online in a bid to pay down part of the huge debt. Products auctioned off included one of the world's most expensive French wines - a $20,000 bottle of Chateau Mouton Rothschild from the year 2000 - plus a 10-year-old Dom Perignon champagne and right down to $2 bottles of Peroni beer. Administrators of George Calombaris's MAdE Establishments restaurant empire have auctioned off as many as 8000 bottles of alcohol from six bars to pay back creditors. Above is the former MasterChef star with his wife Natalie Tricario The booze bottles were sourced from the liquor cabinets and bars of six of Calombaris' former restaurants, including Melbourne's Gazi restaurant (above) 'EVERYTHING MUST BE SOLD!' an ad by the Hymans Auction House said. And most of it went out the door in late April and early May - with just a 'small amount' of alcohol and other inventory left over according to an administrator's report obtained on Monday. A separate fire sale was held for restaurant equipment from four MAdE venues, ranging from whole bars to stoves and MasterChef-style ice cream mixers. The two sales netted the administrators about $333,000, according to the financial report. The result was revealed in financial documents just as an up-market Melbourne yoghurt chain backed by Calombaris, Yo-Chi, was dragged into a fresh debt scandal. Kitchen equipment (above) was also sold off at a separate auction in May A printer that was one of dozens of pieces of backroom equipment to be sold off at auction in May Yo-Chi's three outlets were the sole venues under the MAdE umbrella to trade as usual after the company went into voluntary administration. On Saturday the Herald Sun revealed liquidators had given up trying to claw back an $140,000 inter-company loan from the yoghurt business. 'The liquidators concluded that it would not be commercial to pursue the outstanding loan balance further as Yo-Chi has minimal cash and recoverable assets,' said financial documents seen by Daily Mail Australia. 'In addition, Made Establishment’s claim is as an unsecured creditor of Yo-Chi and we are aware of a secured creditor who would rank ahead of Made Establishment’s claim in any formal insolvency process.' Yo-Chi, an upmarket Melbourne yoghurt chain, was the sole MAdE franchise to continue operating. Liquidators have given up trying to claw back a $140,000 intra-company loan Calombaris has not commented on the latest developments. The once-thriving Melbourne-based restaurant empire he founded previously operated 18 venues including the Press Club, Gazi and Hellenic Republic. But its fortunes changed in July 2019 when it emerged it had underpaid staff to the tune of $7.8 million. The wages were later backpaid but the development devastated the company's reputation and Calombaris' company was hit with a $200,000 fine. The Melbourne-based restaurant empire, founded by Calombaris, once operated 18 venues including the Press Club, Gazi and Hellenic Republic (pictured) Financial documents said MAdE owes $9 million to the Commonwealth Bank alone, with most of that unlikely to be repaid. The liquidators have so far raised $820,000 which is expected to be directed to the bank, which is the main secured creditor. Staff are still owed $1.32 million in wages and entitlements which will be picked up by the taxpayer. When the empire went into administration on February 10, Calombaris said he was 'devastated'. 'It is with deep sadness and regret that today MAdE Establishment has been placed into voluntary administration,' he wrote on social media. 'To all my team, I truly regret it has come to this. On a personal note, the last few months have been the most challenging I have ever faced. 'At this time, while personally devastated, I remain thankful to my family, friends, the MAdE team, our loyal and regular customers. 'I am so sorry all our collective efforts have not provided to be enough. I'm gutted that it's come to this.' Calombaris (pictured, centre) was a judge and host on MasterChef from 2009 until 2019. The trio have this year been replaced by Melissa Leong, Jock Zonfrillo and Andy Allan KordaMentha announced it had been appointed voluntary administrators earlier this year. 'Craig Shepard and Leanne Chesser of KordaMentha restructuring were today appointed Voluntary Administrators of 22 companies in the MAdE Establishment Group,' the advisory and investment firm said in a statement. 'The appointment excludes the [smaller offshoot, yoghurt store] Yo-Chi operations which will continue to trade as usual. All other venues have stopped trading immediately. 'Employees have been paid all outstanding wages and superannuation up to the date of the appointment.' All rights reserved for this news site (dailymail) and under his responsibility