Comedian James Corden was briefly banned from famed New York City restaurant Balthazar, known for hosting celebrities and high-ranking politicians, after he berated staff there on at least two occasions, owner Keith McNally said in an Instagram post Monday.
McNally referred to Corden as a “tiny cretin of a man,” and “the most abusive customer” in the restaurant’s history. He later lifted the ban after Corden called him and “apologized profusely,” he said.
In his initial post, McNally said he would rarely “86″ a customer — restaurant lingo for refusing to serve a patron — but did so after learning that Corden has mistreated his staff on two previous occasions.
“It did not make me laugh,” wrote McNally, a restaurateur behind multiple Manhattan hot spots.
On one occasion in June, Corden showed a piece of hair he had apparently found after eating his main course to a manager, who was “very apologetic,” McNally said. But Corden was “extremely nasty” to the staff member and demanded a second round of drinks “this second” and that previous drinks be taken off the bill, McNally said.
In another incident this month, Corden went to the restaurant for brunch with his wife, who ordered an egg yolk omelette that Corden complained had “a little bit of egg white mixed with the egg yolk,” McNally said. The dish was remade, but it was sent back to Corden’s table with home fries instead of salad, which he said made Corden irate.
“‘You can’t do your job! You can’t do your job! Maybe I should go into the kitchen and cook the omelette myself!’” Corden yelled at the server, McNally said, citing the manager’s report of what happened.
After the incident, free glasses of champagne were brought over to the table in an “effort to smooth things out,” McNally said. The incident left the server “very shaken,” said McNally, who himself has earned a reputation for being provocative on social media, making waves with posts about his life and stance on contentious issues.
But on Monday evening, about seven hours after banning him, McNally posted that Corden was no longer banned after the comedian reached out and apologized. McNally added that he “believes in second chances.”
“Anyone magnanimous enough to apologize to a deadbeat layabout like me (and my staff) doesn’t deserve to be banned from anywhere. Especially Balthazar,” he said. “So Come Back to the 5 & Dime, Jimmy Corden, Jimmy Corden. All is Forgiven.”
Corden, who has hosted the “Late Late Show” for several years, has not publicly commented on the dispute. He announced last year that he plans to leave the show this spring.
Shannon Larson can be reached at shannon.larson@globe.com. Follow her @shannonlarson98.