British expats Keith McNally, owner of Balthazar and many other NYC dining hotspots, and actor/comedian James Corden got into some searing beef in October 2022: McNally called out Corden for at least two instances of Corden being rude/abusive to Balthazar waitstaff — one of which had something to do with there being egg whites in his wife’s yolks-only omelette — and banned Corden from the restaurant henceforth; Corden privately contacted McNally to apologize and the ban was lifted; Corden then said “I haven’t done anything wrong” in a NY Times interview, prompting McNally to reinstate the ban; Corden returned to hosting The Late Late Show and publicly apologized to Balthazar waitstaff; no change in the ban. And all that happened in the span of a week! Cut to May 2025 and McNally has written a memoir, I Regret Almost Everything (10/10 on the title, a close second to actress Kaye Ballard’s How I Lost 10 Pounds in 53 Years), and McNally is spilling more piping hot tea about what went down that fateful week in October:
Restaurateur Keith McNally brags in his new memoir that James Corden begged him to take down a scathing social media post that called out the TV host for being rude to his staff.
“Corden called me four times the day the post came out, each time asking me to please delete it. On the last call he sounded desperate,” the Balthazar owner, 73, writes in “I Regret Almost Everything,” according to an audiobook obtained by People on Thursday.
“Relishing my hold over someone so famous, I told him I wouldn’t delete it. Like a little dictator, I was intoxicated with the power I’d received.”
In October 2022, McNally alleged via Instagram that Corden, now 46, was “the most abusive customer” to his Balthazar servers “since the restaurant opened 25 years ago.”
He further claimed he had to “86” — which means ban — the comedian from all of his establishments due to his “treatment” of staff at the iconic French brasserie as well as Cafe Luxembourg.
Corden later insisted to the New York Times that he had done “nothing wrong,” adding, “I feel so zen about the whole thing. Because I think it’s so silly. I just think it’s beneath all of us. It’s beneath you. It’s certainly beneath your publication.”
McNally then blasted the former “Late Late Show” host for “lying” in an additional Instagram post.
“I’ve no wish to kick a man when he’s down. Especially one who’s worth $100 Million, but when James Corden said in yesterday’s NY Times that he hadn’t done ‘anything wrong, on any level,’ was he joking?” he wrote at the time. “Or was he denying being abusive to my servers?’”
…McNally now admits in his new book that he fanned the flames of the feud for clout.
“By exposing Corden’s abuse, it appeared as though I was defending a principle, when all I was doing was seeking the approval of my young Balthazar staff,” he writes.
The very outspoken Pastis owner goes on to admit it seems “monstrous” that he did not consider the “humiliation” he was subjecting Corden to, adding, “Especially as I hadn’t personally seen the incident I so vividly described on Instagram.”
McNally points out, however, “I’m not suggesting Corden didn’t deserve the backlash from my post. (The b—— probably did.) I’m just saying I didn’t see the incident I wrote about that, to some degree, jeopardized his career.”
What is happening here?! You know what, don’t tell me, cause whatever it is, I’m LOVING it. I thought it was pretty universally understood that McNally came out the winner in the Balthazar Wars, for sticking up for his staff and not tolerating entitled, crappy behavior from a celebrity. So… why is McNally now issuing an apology? Albeit a sorry, not sorry, somewhat backhanded apology, for sure. What with the way he A) reminds everyone of the incident, B) dishes the new juicy tidbit of Corden repeatedly calling in escalating levels of panic to have the post removed, and C) claims his own actions “jeopardized” Corden’s career. That kind of comment can be delivered so many different ways! Which is why the only logical step forward is to see and hear both men live, to get a better sense of intent. I propose having a book release slash Corden-is-no-longer-banned party, held at Balthazar, of course, and instigated moderated by Andy Cohen, with devilled egg yolks on the menu. Men get into such dramatic catfights!
photos credit: James Warren/Bang Showbiz/Avalon, Avalon.red and via Instagram
Lol at all the DRAMA. Known rude person was rude. Everyone knows. How is this still being rehashed years later?
Corden was never famous enough to justify him being this rude. He’s a textbook bully.
On the surface (with the exception of posing with Woody Allen) I’m kinda liking this guy, especially since he stood up for his waitstaff.
I’m still stuck on a yoke only omelette. ????
If memory serves, she’s supposedly allergic to egg whites. Which makes all of this ridiculous because if you’re allergic to any part of an egg, you can’t be eating any part of an egg. It’s not like you can fully separate an egg yolk from a white. In reality, Corden lied (poorly) to justify his behavior.
Or it could be a histamine intolerance. Egg whites are very high in histamine, but yolks aren’t. Usually cooking the whites thoroughly kills(?) the histamine but for some people it’s still not enough. My husband can have hard boiled eggs, and I mean HARD boiled, they’re gross, but a well cooked omelette, scramble, or fried will have him doubled over in pain for a day.
Well James was caught being nasty and selfish to his wife…so I guess karma got him badly with this one.
James, learn how to cook at home. Or hire a private chef who can sign an NDA.
On Monday night, I was following The Cut on IG for their Met Gala coverage and I laughed out loud when they posted a video of Corden and his wife going to the gala and the caption was “I am so sorry to ruin your night this early on but James Corden is on his way to the #metgala”
I fully support rude dicks being called out – especially ones who profit off of a “nice person” image. People aren’t stupid, they see you James Corden.
Was Corden’s career really affected though? He is still around and is still being promoted by his high profile friends, and yet, the stories of being an absolutely terribly rude human being continue to come out. I feel sorry for anyone who works for him or has to serve him.
“Men shouldn’t lead. They’re too emotional.”
Now that I got that out of my system, I need to say how much I live for this type of petty, gossipy drama these days! It’s the perfect palate cleanser while the world is burning. And this is a perfect example of a story filled with characters who are all flawed; I don’t think there are any winners here and the pettiest, gossipiest part of me loves that!
Dude writes a book and this is the most interesting story in it? Not good.
Not to defend Corden but I’ve recently seen McNally’s name came up with respect to putting other celebs on blast? Is this his thing now? Are his restaurants that good? Because why would I want to eat somewhere where the owner is running to TMZ to sh*t talk about me afterwards?