Daniel Humm drives a customer away of Eleven Madison Park for insulting the waiters

Photo credit: Eleven Madison Park

Eleven Madison Park is one of the most famous and exclusive restaurants in the world; 3 Michelin Stars, Best restaurant in the world in 2017 and other international awards. It is located on the eleventh floor of one of the most beautiful Manhattan skyscrapers and it is managed by Daniel Humm, one of the most revolutionary chefs of his generation. In recent weeks in the United States there has been much talk about this restaurant because the chef  had an argument with a customer and kicked him out. Ari Emanuel, the diner, was repeatedly accused of having a disrespectful attitude towards the waiters at Eleven Madison Park who complained about this thing to the chef. After several reports, Daniel Humm asked to respect his workers, and finally he asked for the removal of Emanuel who left the room indignant but without causing anymore problems. The customer is always right, but to what extent?

What happened between Daniel Humm and Ari Emanuel

The famous phrase "the customer is always right" was coined by Harry Gordon Selfridge in 1909, one of the most important entrepreneurs of the last century, and also one of the fathers of the modern concept of the shopping center. However, this phrase is often misrepresented; the owner of Selfridges department stores certainly did not want to give the green light to the rudeness of customers, he simply wanted to emphasize the vital importance of support for the success of a business. Basically, he asked his employees to listen and try to solve the problems of the buyers, certainly not to satisfy their tantrums.

But actually Ari Emanuel, one of the most powerful magnates in Hollywood, agent of stars such as Oprah Winfrey, Martin Scorsese and Charlize Theron, a very powerful person in the United States, was not so kind and had some tantrums. The visit of the Endeavor CEO was highly anticipated at Eleven Madison Park since, on June 10, Daniel Humm announced the reopening with an (almost) entirely vegan menu, with the only exception of milk and honey accompanying tea and coffee (a tradition of the restaurant since its opening). Ari Emanuel is one of the most extreme and famous vegans in America, one of the vegan faces par excellence of the United States, especially of the West Coast. Not all went well, though.

The story was told (and later confirmed by the chef) by Page Six who interviewed two guests present that evening. According to the New York tabloid, the Hollywood super agent allegedly had a real hysterical attack against the waiting staff, a behavior that intensified during the meal. According to Page Six, Ari Emanuel would repeatedly swear at several staff members. Complaints have ranged from simple waiting service to dinner length (at Eleven Madison Park the experience lasts between two and a half to three hours), raising his voice and asking for privileged treatment.

As soon as he got to know about the mistreatment, Daniel Humm decided to drive Ari Emanuel away because "at Eleven Madison Park we have a zero tolerance policy for staff mistreatment." The news quickly made the rounds of the web, first at home and then in the rest of the world, because it caused a sensation. There are those who said that, in fact, the customer is always right, those who openly sided with the chef who would have done well to defend his staff against rudeness. Someone was expecting a response from the stars agent, but his staff said they didn't want to comment on the news.