'I could give two s**** about Harry's date': Ex-maitre d' recalls horrible encounter with Meghan Markle
NEW YORK CITY, NEW YORK: Former maitre d' Michael Cecchi-Azzolina claims that Meghan Markle's handler rudely asked for a private table at Michelin-starred restaurant Le Coucou in New York City in 2017. Her handler demanded a private table, claiming it was "for someone who is dating a prince." At the time, Markle was dating Prince Harry, whom she married a year later.
In his upcoming memoir, 'Your Table Is Ready: Tales of a New York City Maître D,' Cecchi-Azzolina writes that Markle and her handler arrived 20 minutes early for the reservation and demanded special treatment right away, reports Daily Mail. The former maître d' claims that Markle was quiet and "aloof" while her handler spoke.
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"Are you aware my guest is dating Prince Harry and about to be a duchess?" Cecchi-Azzolina wrote in reference to the unnamed staffer. "Don't you have a private area for us to wait?" Cecchi-Azzolina, who spent 2.5 years working at Le Coucou, remembers informing them that he didn't have a private table available.
In his book, Cecchi-Azzolina details his reaction to the request. "My first impulse was to laugh. I could give two s**** about Prince Harry's date, and by the attention, the escort was drawing from the crowd at the bar, nor did anyone else," he writes. "We get the most powerful people in the world that come here — no one really cares about you."
Cecchi-Azzolina claims in his memoir that Meghan Markle wasn't the only famous person who made him feel uncomfortable. He described his experiences in alleged conversations with supermodel Naomi Campbell and Vogue editor Anna Wintour as "absolutely horrible" and "uncivilized." Cecchi-Azzolina's book will be available in stores on December 6.
The memoir's release comes days after the ongoing dispute between late-night show James Corden and Balthazar owner, Keith McNally. McNally said on Instagram that Corden had been barred from his restaurant as a result of being "abusive" to his servers. "James Corden is a Hugely gifted comedian, but a tiny Cretin of a man. And the most abusive customer to my Balthazar servers since the restaurant opened 25 years ago," said McNally.