James Corden has apologised on his talk show for his behaviour at a restaurant in New York, seemingly putting the story to bed - except, it looks like it isn't going away just yet.
The actor has been in the headlines since Keith McNally, who owns Balthazar, labelled him a 'tiny cretin of a man' over his alleged treatment of staff earlier this month, and barred him from eating at his restaurant.
Initially, Corden said he hadn't 'done anything wrong, on any level'; however, speaking on The Late Late Show, he conceded that he had been 'ungracious'.
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Keith subsequently said the 44-year-old was a 'real man' and revoked his ban - but not all the staff at the restaurant bought the apology.
Corden stated that he'd made a 'rude' comment in the 'heat of the moment' after his wife was served food she was seriously allergic to.
But staff said he'd ordered an omelette that wasn't on the menu - then kicked off when it wasn't to his liking.
"I'm sorry but that is bulls**t," one server, who declined to be named, told the Daily Mail.
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"He wanted an omelette that had only egg yolks. Not the egg-white omelette, just egg yolks.
"Why then would you even bother ordering an omelette if you're allergic to eggs?"
Staff claimed the egg allergy was just an excuse and he had been rude to them in the past.
Barman George said: "We deal with that kind of behaviour from people all the time.
"But he... he was very, very rude."
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Speaking on his show, Corden admitted he had been rude.
"I understand the difficulties of being a server," he said. "I worked shifts at restaurants for years.
"I have such respect and I value anyone that does such a job. And the team at that restaurant are so great – that's why I love it there. The restaurant manager and the server, they were lovely.
"But here's the truth of it. Because I didn't shout, or scream – I didn't get up out of my seat, I didn't call anyone names or use derogatory language – I've been walking around thinking I hadn't done anything wrong… right?
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"But the truth is I have. I made a rude comment, and it was wrong. It was an unnecessary comment. It was ungracious to the server."
He added that he had phoned up to apologise to Keith and hoped to apologise to the servers in person - should he be welcomed back.
He said: "I love that restaurant. I love the staff there. I hope I am allowed in again one day, so when I'm back in New York I can go there and apologise in person - which is something I will absolutely do."
Well, Keith has now lifted his ban, so it remains to be seen whether staff will accept his apology in person.
Topics: James Corden, Food And Drink, Celebrity
Jake Massey