"This above all; to thine own self be true"
2 years ago, Mario Batali made headlines by comparing bankers to Hitler or Stalin.
"I would have to say that who has had the largest effect on the whole planet without us really paying attention across the board and everywhere is the entire banking industry and their disregard for the people that they’re supposed to be working for….So the ways the bankers have kind of toppled the way money is distributed and taken most of it into their hands is as good as Stalin or Hitler and the evil guys…They’re not heroes, but they are people that had a really huge effect on the way the world is operating".
That set off a rash of negative reaction across the finance industry. The best I ever saw was a Bloomberg review titled "Et tu Brutu?" For those unfamiliar with Batali, he's an American chef best known for Italian themed restaurants; in New York, a few Batali strongholds include Del Posto, Casa Mono, Lupa, Babbo, and Otto (all located in Manhattan). In my naive opinion, all are simply average except for Babbo. Also, as of late, Batali has diluted his name about as much as Donald Trump when Trump started selling steaks. By dilution, I mean, he's everywhere; in Vegas, there are a few that use his name, which calls into question the quality of the restaurant.
In any case, after I heard the comments, I vowed never to visit a Batali restaurant again out of principle. Why? Because the man simply does not know at all what he's talking about! I tried to analyze his comments like I tried analyzing Captain Ahad in Moby Dick, but came to my null hypothesis that financiers and bankers have very little influence whatsoever. In fact, on could argue Mr. Batali made a Jersey Shore-quality comment (which so happened to offend a significant percentage of the hard-working folk in great city of New York City).
Then earlier this month, I went to Babbo (after a 5-year hiatus) and found myself in a predicament because the food was actually very good. I tried to find errors with the service, the food, the atmosphere and couldn't really. Hence, it really asks the question on whether or not we should stay true to ourselves when presented with an attractive deal. If a salesperson would offend you, would you still buy a TV from him if only he was carrying a great TV at a reasonable price? I was torn. Then, I decided in the end that by going again, I would concede on the principle of dealing with offensive / clueless people, but be true to my inner value investor; in all, Babbo represents a great trade for me (I pay reasonable amount of money and receive high quality Italian food). In any case, there is no reason to hold my breath as the place is impossible to get a reservation to anyways.
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