NYC restaurateur Keith McNally reveals A-list celebrity who made waitress cry: ‘Incredibly rude’
NYC restaurateur Keith McNally has revealed the A-list celebrity who was once “incredibly rude” to one of his servers, prompting them to burst into tears.
McNally, who owns more than a dozen hotspot eateries in Manhattan — including Balthazar’s, Pastis and Minetta Tavern — recalled when he worked as a general manager at the iconic One Fifth restaurant in the 1970s.
In an excerpt obtained by New York Magazine’s Grub Street of his upcoming memoir, “I Regret Almost Everything: A Memoir,” McNally named and shamed singer Patti Smith, who had frequented the Italian eatery, which closed down for good in February.
McNally revealed that the “Because the Night” singer often dined at the hotspot with her then-boyfriend, photographer Robert Mapplethorpe.
The duo was often joined by Mapplethorpe’s ex, Sam Wagstaff, who had lived in an apartment above the Italian joint.
“Smith and Mapplethorpe could be very difficult to wait on,” McNally wrote.
“Smith, unfortunately, was incredibly rude to the servers. It’s impossible for me to listen to a Patti Smith song today without remembering her reducing a waitress to tears because she forgot to put bread on the table,” he claimed.
However, McNally noted that Mapplethorpe had “never tried to belittle” waitstaff, unlike the four-time Grammy nominee.
The excerpt prompted several other social media users to share their experiences of crossing paths with the singer, 78.
“He’s not lying about Patti Smith,” one person wrote in the comments section of New York Magazine’s Instagram post. “I witnessed her rudeness years ago at working a banquet.”
“The Patti Smith is rude to servers comment just broke my heart,” another wrote, while a third added that they were “shocked” to learn Smith wasn’t friendly to servers.
Still, some people rushed to the singer’s defense.
“I know people who have spent time with her in the past few years and she was sweet as could be … I guess she’s mellowed … or that waiter was very sensitive,” one person wrote.
Another added, “Your comment about Patti is disturbing. She was always down to earth and lovely when we worked together or met via Sony Music. Did you ever discus [sic] it with her? Lord knows I’ve had my bad moments.”
The Post has reached out to Smith’s reps for comment.
In 2022, McNally made headlines after he sensationally banned James Corden from dining at his NYC restaurant Balthazar following the British comedian’s boorish behavior toward staff.
“[He’s] the most abusive customer to my Balthazar servers since the restaurant opened 25 years ago,” said McNally in?a scathing Instagram post?in October 2022, calling the former “The Late Late Show” host a “tiny cretin of a man.”
McNally later revealed that Corden had called him to apologize, resulting in a lift of the initial ban.
“I Regret Almost Everything: A Memoir” is expected to hit shelves on May 6.
