Chef Mario Batali drops F bomb on King and Queen of Spain in Miami

[Mika]

http://www.miamiherald.com/1046/story/914435.html

The South Beach Wine & Food Festival's $1,000-a-plate dinner for the king and queen of Spain was gliding along elegantly, with dignitaries and guests feasting on vanguard cooking by some of Spain's most important chefs and quaffing some of its best wines.

And then the master of ceremonies, superstar chef Mario Batali, royally messed with what he himself had called a historic occasion.

''All you weasel f---wads in the back corners, can I have 10 seconds of your time?'' Batali said into the microphone, impatient that the crowd wasn't quieting quickly enough for his introduction of chef José Andrés, culinary chair of the Thursday night Biltmore Hotel gala.

Jaws dropped in a glittering crowd of 400 that included Florida Gov. Charlie Crist, U.S. Sen. Mel Martinez, the mayor of Coral Gables, the U.S. ambassador to Spain and Julio Iglesias. Gloria Estefan, enjoying the evening with husband Emilio, chortled.

Batali, wearing pants rather than shorts for once but still in his signature orange Crocs, went on with his introduction of Andrés, whom he called his ``favorite chef in the world.''

He noted that Andrés' Los Angeles restaurant, The Bazaar, had just received four stars from the Los Angeles Times.

''The most motherf------ stars of any Spanish restaurant in the U.S.,'' Batali said. Those who were seated near the royal couple said the queen blanched.

The king was cooler.

''His reaction was to wolf whistle,'' said political lobbyist Ana Navarro, girlfriend of Biltmore owner Gene Prescott.

'Afterward, I went up to the king and I said, `I'm sorry about the foul language, but just so you know, is not from Miami and he's not Cuban.' And the king said, 'What foul language?' ''

After all, Juan Carlos has a bit of a bad-boy streak himself.

When Hugo Chávez repeatedly interrupted the Spanish prime minister at a 2007 summit meeting, the king blurted an angry ''Por que no te callas?''(``Why don't you shut up?'') at the Venezuelan president that made him a hero in some quarters.

HUMOR AND HORROR

Navarro said the royal couple were at ease the whole evening, though protocol quickly went out the window.

''Everybody was milling around, people were switching seats to talk to friends at other tables, they were coming up to the royal table to talk to the king,'' she said.

``Charlie Crist left before the king, which is a big breech of protocol. But everybody was enjoying the food and the wine -- some of us partook in the wine more than others -- and it was too late and too fun an evening to get really upset.''

But plenty of diners were appalled.

''I am still horrified,'' said Alejandro Muguerza, head of Miami's Le Basque catering company.

`COOL, NOT STIFF'

Muguerza helped plan the decor, secured $50,000 in sponsorship from his native Basque region and coordinated the participation of several Basque chefs.

''The king and queen are cool in that they are not stiff,'' said Muguerza, a close friend of the queen's sister. ''They haven't witnessed a thing like this probably in their entire lives,'' he said.

``Worse than what Batali said was the fact that the governor of Florida, who was seated to the left of the queen, kept getting up to schmooze. She was left alone several times. That is just not done. The people at my table, who were all from Spain, all had their mouths open.''

Batali, who is scheduled to take part in a festival dinner honoring Emeril Lagasse Saturday night, could not be reached for comment Friday.

Though known for his Italian cooking, Batali is one the world's biggest champions of modern Spanish cuisine. He and actress Gwyneth Paltrow, along with New York Times food writer Mark Bittman and Spanish actress Claudia Bassols, embarked on a foodie road trip through the country that yielded a 2008 PBS series (Spain . . . On the Road Again) and book (Spain: A Culinary Road Trip).

''Spain is the most important wine and food destination in the entire world,'' he gushed at the start of the evening.

By the end of the night, however, he was crocked, observers said, even grabbing Andrés' butt at one point and making quick, crude humping motions.

Like the king, the Spanish chef kept his cool.

''This is what food and wine from Spain will do to you,'' he told the crowd. ``It will lift your spirits.''

[Judi Lynn]

1. Well, Mika, it appears someone came along to raise the general TONE in Miami!

Ya gotta admit whatever this ####fest was, it's a damned sight better than when the angry mob stands outside Cuban concerts and flings baggies filled with excrement at concert goers, along with D-cell batteries, while lobbing filthy sexual insults at their girlfriends and wives!

More uplifting than a dozen car-bombings, or fire bombs pitched through the windows of pro-Cuba businesses.

More inspiring than the murder of judges and witnesses at the cocaine trafficking trials of Sal Magluta and Willie Falcon! More lofty than the long anticipated bloody death of mass murdering bombers like Batista henchman/Bosch/Posada associate Ricardo "Monkey" Morales.



Not everyone can do this and live to boast about it!

[Mika]

2. Pretty funny.

Especially this..

By the end of the night, however, he was crocked, observers said, even grabbing Andrés' butt at one point and making quick, crude humping motions.

The King was cool about this. It was a flattering imitation of the relationship between the exiles and the Spanish royals. ;)

[Peace Patriot]

3. The ruling class is still having a lot of fun, I see...

:puke:

[Mika]

4. Event sounded like a real barrel of laughs.

The fuckwads comment was the icing on the cake. Perfect, actually, considering the slime in attendance. And, who wouldn't want motherf#cking stars for their restaurant?

Belly laughs all around.

Miami is really just such a world-class act.

:puke:

[Mika]

5. Miami Herald lambasts Batali's f-bomb laden Emceeing.

We are not amused
OUR OPINION: Rule for Miami emcees: Don't drop f-bomb on royal visitors
http://www.miamiherald.com/opinion/editorials/story/918422.html

We don't claim to be experts on protocol, but we would bet there is a rule against dropping the ''f-bomb'' in the presence of royalty. Obviously, Mario Batali is no expert, either.

The celebrity chef raised quite a stir in an obscenity-laced performance at a dinner featuring King Juan Carlos and Queen Sofía of Spain at the Biltmore Hotel last week. The royals seemed to take the outburst in stride but, truth is, there was very little amuse in the verbal amuse-bouche the chef delivered when serving as master of ceremonies.

Maybe no one told Mr. Batali that he should restrain his language. Maybe someone should have. Maybe next time organizers will make sure that whoever controls the microphone at these events knows the difference between serving as emcee at an elegant dinner with royalty and presiding over a beer bust at Animal House. That is not asking too much, is it?

While we're on the subject of asking . . . how about the governor also brushing up on royal protocol before attending events where he has to put the state's best foot forward?

Gov. Charlie Crist reportedly left the dinner before the king and queen. That's a no-no. He also abandoned his dinnermate, Queen Sofía, to get up and schmooze and glad-hand with others in the crowd. Another no-no -- good politics, bad manners.

No offense was intended, of course, and none was taken. But that's no excuse. The royal visitors were guests in our state. When the occasion calls for certain formalities, the rules should be observed. For our public officials, knowing the rules goes with the terrority -- or should.

As a rule, Americans aren't crazy about protocol. We're not into bowing and scraping. But we know what common courtesy is, and so should public officials. Chefs, too.

[Judi Lynn]

6. Interesting! How wise of the official paper of America's "Terror Capital"

to put things in perspective!

If Batali doesn't get his stuff together, he might anticpate a car boomie which might blow those little orange Crocs right off his feet, and his feet right along behind them. I'm sure the escoria don't appreciate anyone making their town look bad besides them.