NYC restaurant Balthazar reveals who is on its VIP list, and the special treatment that comes with the ranking

Keith McNally, the owner of notable New York City restaurants including Balthazar, has revealed his rating system for special VIP guests at the downtown Manhattan eatery.

The restaurateur has become known for sharing the inside scoop on the celebrities frequenting his famed restaurants Balthazar, Pastis, and Minetta Tavern on social media. Most notably, McNally publicly called out James Corden in October, alleging on Instagram that the comedian was “the most abusive customer” towards his staff. McNally even went as far as banning him from Balthazar.

McNally has since reversed the ban, but is still spilling the tea on the celebrities going in and out of Balthazar. Recently, McNally has been posting daily reports from his Balthazar maître d’s revealing which customers are labelled “AAA” and who is “AA”.

Over the weekend, McNally shared a Saturday night report from staff member Zouheir to Instagram.

“AAA Mark Settembre one of the most liked regulars by our entire staff for his super generous, friendly & warm personality along with his lovely partner Anna recognized AAA Sandra Mintz from Morandi,” the caption read.

Mark Settembre is a movie producer and real estate developer in New Jersey. Speaking about the VIP rating to the New York Post, Settembre praised the restaurant and its ability to quickly make accommodations whenever he chooses to dine there. Settembre said he’s been going to the eatery since it opened in 1997.

“I called Balthazar on Saturday afternoon to get a table for eight that night; they put it together for me,” he told the outlet.

Just two days prior, McNally posted another report to his social media and declared Vogue editor-in-chief Anna Wintour a AAA guest at Balthazar. The fashion icon dined at the restaurant last week with British actor and rumoured boyfriend Bill Nighy, who currently holds an AA rating, according to McNally.

“VIPs today were Joel Cutler (AA), Mike Romoff (AA), Michael Hansen (AA), Paul Woolmington (AA) and his guest Paul Barnett (AA), Chris Paparella (AA), Elizabeth Thompson (AA), Anna Wintour (AAA) and her guest Bill Nighy (AA), and Jeannie Conlon (AA),” he said.

Other famous customers have included actor Leonardo DiCaprio and Gus Wenner, the son of Rolling Stone co-founder Jann Wenner. In November, McNally shared a picture of a Post-it note, which revealed that the Don’t Look Up actor is rated “AA” in McNally’s eyes.

A Sunday brunch report written by Balthazar maître’d Allie read: “One of the highlights of the day today was that Leonardo DiCaprio came in as a walk-in today just after we finished brunch service.”

The daily report revealed that DiCaprio came into the restaurant dressed “in disguise” with a mask and a baseball cap.

“Despite being incognito, he was still very recognisable,” they said. “Some of the staff including me (I’m embarrassed to say!), wanted to do something VERY SPECIAL for Leonardo, but you were quite adamant that we do absolutely nothing for him, so we didn’t.”

Meanwhile, Wenner – who is rated AA – recently dined with singer Lorde at Minetta Tavern.

In October, Balthazar made headlines when McNally claimed The Late Late Show host James Corden was “the most abusive customer” to his staff in the 25 years since it opened. On Instagram, McNally shared a photo of the comedian and dubbed him “a tiny cretin of a man.”

McNally went on to describe two examples of Corden’s alleged treatment towards staff, and said he was no longer allowed at the restaurant. However, Corden apologised for his “ungracious” behaviour and McNally rescinded the ban.