Posted on 03/27/2007 9:26:39 AM PDT by Hildy
Actor Jeremy Piven has reportedly been banned from America's Nobu restaurants after paying a waiter's tip with a DVD. The Old School star was dining at celebrity chef Nobu Matsuhisa's restaurant in Aspen, Colorado during the recent Us Comedy Arts Festival. When the bill came, Piven paid up and left the waiter a copy of his Entourage series DVD as a tip. The outraged server threw the DVD at the celebrity diner. A fellow diner tells the New York Daily News, "He (Piven) came in with a large group of 12 or more without reservations and asked for a table. It was a very busy night, but a table, although cramped, was provided. On his way out, he made a nasty comment to the manager: 'Thanks for nothing.'" The actor was later advised to steer clear of all Nobu restaurants. But Piven is playing down the incident in Aspen: "I'm such a fan of Nobu and all of his restaurants. I had a great dinner at the Nobu in Aspen. As always, the meal was excellent and the service was great."
He took his mother as his date to this year's Golden Globes. Just like Kevin Spacey took his mom to the Oscars a few years back.
Yes, he's been in a few movies, Grosse Point Blank, Serendipity are 2 more I recall. But obviously he hasn't the brains to realize you can't pay the utilities or buy Huggies with a DVD. Dolt.
Remind me never to dine with you or attend any FREEPER event with you. People like you make me literally ill.
I would pay big bucks to see a video of the server throwing the DVD at Piven.
I worked as a waiter at a chain family restaurant back in the early 80s (anybody remember "Peoples" restaurants?), and one night the actor who played "Les Nessmond" from WKRP came in for dinner. I believe that this was a year or two after WKRP had been canceled, and he was in town playing at a dinner theater. It was tough, but I managed to keep away from him, since WKRP is still one of my favorite TV shows ever. However, he kept having his dinner interrupted by other diners, wanting to say "hello" or get an autograph. I was amazed at just how nice and gracious he was to everyone who came over. And although I wasn't his waiter, I was told that he left a very generous tip. It seems that some people are just nice, and they stay that way. I've heard from a number of people over the years that Jeremy Piven has always been an ass, and not an easy interview.
Mark
But you did feel a burning desire to update FR about the "celebrity" in question? A generic starlet who cannot even give away his DVDs, apparently? What, are you president of his fan club or something? You a waitress at Naboo of Aspen?
If you'd check the Michelin guide, you'll see that the Nobu restaurants are some of the best rated in the world. Getting a job as a waiter there is extremely difficult, and the managers wouldn't put up with anyone of the staff giving anything less than excellent service. Seriously, that sort of tip is an insult, though given the way some celebrities seem to think of themselves, Piven probably thought that he was "giving of himself."
Mark
People who think they're superior because they don't keep up with popular culture are funny to me. I think it's important to know popular culture...it tells you alot about the direction a society is going.
Obviously, you don't. Bully for you.
Restaurants charge plenty for their meals, if they can't pay their help a fair wage, that is their problem, not mine, I pay for the meal and eveything that goes with it. If service is extra, it should be printed out on the menu. How hard would that be to do? Simply put Lobster $15.50 Delivery to table and other services an addional $10.50. Simple, no? People like you make me sick so I guess we are even. The big diffrence is you can't see when you are being legally robbed of your money.
I read an article years ago about a contractor who did work for Jackie Kennedy in her New York home. She wanted to give him something of hers (forget what), in lieu of payment. I still remember the contractor's words, "I want my money."
A lot of these egomaniacs think that service people should be honored to do work for them.
I'm not sure who's snottier - Piven or the waiter.
Usually with a large group, the tip is automatically added into the bill as an additional line item. Hmmm?
Smells fake to me.
Enjoy your spit and snot infested food. Think about it. There's some real nuts out there.
Hope the server's arm was in good shape, and that he threw a fastdisk and hit him.
Listen, YOU'RE JUST CHEAP. Admit it. You know before you go to a restaurant what is expected of you. If you choose not to live up to the societal agreement, it's because you're CHEAP. CHEAP. CHEAP.
And this is doubly strange because most people in the entertainment industry worked as waiters or bartenders before they got their break in the business.
when you go to a "real, sitdown" restaurant, you know ahead of time that the waiters are, in effect, independent contractors. They're there to make sure that you have, at the very least, a satisfactory dining experience. The main reason for the "minimum wage" paid to wait staff is to facilitate withholding of taxes. If you don't want to leave a tip, you should go to places where the restaurant actually pay a wage to their staff, like McDonalds or Burger King. And if you don't leave a tip at a "real, sit down" restaurant, you might not want to visit again.
I know lots of people think we should tip, I don't, and I applaud this guy for leaving a DVD, maybe the service was terrible, maybe he just didn't want to be robbed beyond the exorbitant price this restaurant charges for meals. Either way it is his right and for a server to get mad because he wasn't tipped is pure BS.
Hey, if you can't afford the bill, you have no business going to the restaurant in the first place. And the tip should be counted as part of the cost of the dinner. If you don't like it, go somewhere else.
Mark
Who knows at restaurants like this where the rich and famous go. At that level, why limit what the party chooses to give? I don't know...I've never dined at Nobu, although I've heard it is fantastic.
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