New York City restaurateur Keith McNally has been slammed for saying the English make the worst tips, while critics said he should pay staff more instead of blaming customers.
The London-born owner of celebrity hotspot Balthazar caused a social media storm on Monday after berating his compatriots on Instagram.
In a message with the Union Jack, he raged: “SHAMED TO BE ENGLISH. I wonder why British people are generally the WORST TIPPERS in NY restaurants?’
“Especially if they belong to the middle or upper class. This is not a complaint, just a fact. (Even the Scots generally tip better than the English in New York restaurants).’
But followers were quick to point out that McNally should know that the tipping system in the US – where it’s common to add between 15 and 25 percent – is alien to Brits.
Keith McNally says he’s ‘ashamed to be English’ after berating Britons for tipping horribly
Instagram users criticized McNally for blaming customers, saying the ‘system in NYC is weird’
McNally regularly posts photos of himself with his celebrity guests, including Sienna Miller
Despite the fact that British-born Vogue editor Anna Wintour is a regular client of Balthazar, McNally launched a blistering attack on English people, calling them the worst tippers
Others suggested that McNally and other New York restaurateurs should pay their staff more instead of leaving it to customers to supplement their wages.
Daniel Milner said, “Why defend the right of restaurant owners not to actually pay their staff and instead attack their customers, are you being paid for your opinion?”
Another user added: ‘Change the system! Going to a restaurant should be an all-inclusive experience. Expecting an extra payment to get the food on the table is anathema to many. The idea that there should be an additional charge for service will only create confusion and resentment if it doesn’t happen. The price on the menu should be the price for EVERYTHING.’
Anna Wahlberg pointed out that it wasn’t just the British who found New York’s customs strange, saying, “In Europe, tipping is so different…The system in NYC is weird…”
But McNally doubled down: “I don’t believe that’s the reason,” he said.
“Time and time again my servers have given English customers perfect service, but they often got much less than the standard 15% tip,” adding: “I think most middle and upper class English people tip horribly because they subconsciously want to keep working people in their place as they have done for hundreds of years.’
The restaurateur then followed up on his original post by sharing a photo of a card left by a British customer at one of his other New York restaurants, Minetta Tavern.
It said, “Keith. Your comment about Brits not tipping has me stressed. I always tip >20%. Dinner @Minetta tonight was sublime as was Jeremy’s service. Today I tipped 50%. Thank you.’
McNally wrote alongside it, “I never wanted this to be a result of my last post about tipping English people.”
One follower quipped in response, “How much has James Corden left behind?” A reference to McNally’s infamous feud with James Corden, when the restaurateur banned the British talk show host from his restaurants for his “abusive” behavior towards servers.
Corden then called McNally to apologize and the ban was lifted.
On Sunday, McNally revealed that a mysterious celebrity who dined at Morandi, another of his restaurants, had left a $1,000 tip.
The restaurateur followed up his original post by sharing a photo of a card left by a British customer at one of his other New York restaurants, Minetta Tavern, who said he had tipped 50% after seeing McNally’s diatribe
McNally has strict rules for the celebrity serving staff and does not want them to receive special treatment
McNally banned British talk show host James Corden (pictured above with wife Julia in 2018) from his restaurants last year over his “offensive” behavior towards servers. Corden issued an apology and the ban was lifted
“Servers were thrilled to hear that X was coming tonight. X is phenomenally generous and usually leaves over a thousand for the tip. X decided to sit in a booth today. (He usually opts for a window table.) X left a $1,000 tip for server Mercedes,’ he said.
The 71-year-old regularly posts photos of himself with his celebrity guests, including Anna Wintour and Sienna Miller.
Other celebrity guests included Mick Jagger, Cher, and Andy Warhol, but McNally has strict rules for staff about serving celebrities and doesn’t want them to receive special treatment.
“Never give them drinks on the house, always talk to the person they are with rather than them,” he told the Sunday Times.
“Famous people are really bullied by overly elaborate service. They just want to be left alone.’
McNally was born in Bethnal Green in East London in 1951, to Joyce, a cleaner and Jack, a longshoreman and amateur boxer.
He moved to New York in 1975 to become a director, but soon turned his attention to restaurants after holding a series of kitchen jobs, from oyster shaker to busboy.
McNally believes that “celebrities really get pissed off with overly elaborate service. They just want to be left alone.’
McNally moved to New York in 1975 before opening his first restaurant The Odeon in 1980
Five years later, he opened his first restaurant, the Odeon in Tribeca, with his first wife Lynn Wagenknecht and his brother Brian.
The Odeon quickly became the “center of the downtown arts scene,” with Andy Warhol, Jean-Michel Basquiat, Julian Schnabel, Anna Wintour, Lorne Michaels, and the cast of Saturday Night Live among its regulars.
McNally has regularly sparked controversy on Instagram, where he’s an outspoken, unvarnished version of himself.
Like many restaurateurs, he has also had his fair share of failures over the years. The pandemic paid for two: his Soho bistro Lucky Strike, which he opened in 1989, and Augustine in the financial district.
McNally’s Lower East Side bistro Cherche Midi closed in 2017, just four years after opening, while Schiller’s Liquor Bar followed suit a year later.