Italian Tourist Spends The Night In Jail After Ringing Up $200 Bill At Smith & Wolensky's And Forgetting His Wallet In His Hotel

Gothamist – Every waiter knows that Europeans are among the worst tippers on earth, but they can usually be counted on to at least pay the bill. But the Maitre d’ at Midtown East steakhouse Smith & Wollensky wasn’t about to take any chances on Italian tourist Graziano Graziussi when, at the end of his meal Monday night, he realized he forgot his wallet in his hotel. The bill came to $208, and apparently washing dishes is no longer an option these days. Graziussi, who was dining at the restaurant with a friend, tells Honest Cooking, “I kindly asked the staff how we could manage the situation. I proposed to leave my iPhone with them, run back to the hotel and then come back with my wallet in 15 minutes.” Instead, the Maitre d’ called the cops. “I wasn’t worried,” Graziuissi says. “I thought that the police would laugh at the situation and let me go get my wallet. But, they were pretty rough. They handcuffed me outside the restaurant and took me straight to jail like a criminal.” Graziussi, who has no criminal record, begged the officers to take him to his hotel so he could retrieve his wallet, but they refused, explaining that they weren’t “a taxi service.” As for his offer to leave his iPhone as collateral while he ran back to his hotel, a police source asks the Daily News, “How do they know that iPhone was his? It could have come from anywhere.” It also seems a tad curious that Graziussi’s friend had absolutely no means of paying the bill either. Graziussi spent the night in the tombs, where, he says, “you are treated like an animal, for forgetting your wallet.” He was released after appearing before a judge in the morning, having promised to return to court next week and pay the check. 

Listen up you greasy dago – this isn’t Italy. There aren’t gypsies running around with fake babies looking to steal from people. In America when you sit down and eat a 200 dollar meal, you pay for it. We don’t want your iPhone as collateral. We don’t care what your excuse is. We just want you to pay for your steak and get the fuck out of our country. Oh you left your wallet in your hotel room, Graziano? Well what about your friend, Luigi or whatever the fuck his name is? Neither of you can pay? Well then you’re spending 200 dollars worth of steak in prison time. Its as simple as that.