NEW YORK - A Gay former waiter at top-rated restaurant Jean Georges has served up a jolting federal lawsuit on the eatery, claiming he was subjected to extreme sexual harassment - including a forced encounter with a naked hooker at an X-rated employees' bash.
The civil suit filed by Joseph Bassani in Manhattan Federal Court claims Jean Georges became a den of debauchery during a raucous 2004 going-away party for chef de cuisine Tony DiSalvo, who singled out Bassani when a hooker hired for the event sought "a volunteer."
The naked woman allegedly "pushed [Bassani] onto the top of one of the dining room tables and began to gyrate her genitals within inches of his face," the suit states. "Bassani shut his eyes and froze waiting for the assault to end." Bassani claims he saw co-workers restrain DiSalvo's successor so the hooker could perform sex acts on him, according to the suit against the restaurant and owner Jean-Georges Vongerichten.
The Columbus Circle eatery boasts a three-star Michelin rating. A spokeswoman for Jean Georges management said she wasn't aware of the suit, adding that Bassani "left of his own accord and on good terms."
The lewd party incident was one in a string of abuses that Bassani allegedly endured while working as a waiter and senior captain from 2004 to 2006, according to the suit that seeks unspecified damages.
Bassani claims restaurant employees routinely called him a "faggot" and spread rumors that he was "dying of AIDS." He says he decided to resign after his complaints to the human resources department resulted in little disciplinary action. On Jan. 28, 2006, Bassani's last night, the restaurant maitre d' "thanked him for 'two years of his tightened sphincter' " and presented three covered plates, according to court papers.
The first plate contained a note saying the chef would cook him a special meal, but the other two revealed unwanted surprises - "a rubber vagina" and "a large banana." Bassani says he was refused a position at another major restaurant after Jean Georges' human resources rep told him he had received a poor reference.
from The New York Post
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