Why JLo, Affleck had to switch their New Year’s Eve plans
The management of Villa Azur at The Venetian wants to make it clear, “We didn’t tell them no. They asked for a private dining room, and we don’t have one, so they went elsewhere. I would love to have hosted them.”
That’s from restaurant GM Jason Gordon, in reference to Jennifer Lopez and Ben Affleck’s truncated New Year’s Eve dinner plans.
The superstar power couple attempted the nearly impossible — reserving a table for 10 with 2 1/2 hours’ notice on NYE. They opted out when informed there was no private VIP dining room in the restaurant.
How this unspooled:
A rep for the couple contacted a hotel F&B exec at about 5 p.m., asking for a 7:30 p.m. reservation for 10. The request was forwarded to Gordon, who was on-site at Villa Azur during the evening. So was yours truly, much of the night, taking in Steph Payne’s performance with our own group that included “Let’s Hear it For the Boy” hitmaker Deniece Williams; among family and friends.
Gordon, a veteran hospitality professional, knew enough about these VIPs to anticipate they wanted a private dining room. He was right, but no chance of that. The wide-open Villa Azur dining room is not a private experience.
As Gordon responded when the request came down, “I need some movable walls.” He actually had that option in his days at Wolfgang Puck’s Postrio, in The Venetian’s St. Mark’s Square.
If they ever redesign that space, title it The Bennifer Room and invite the whole crew back.
John Katsilometes’ column runs daily in the A section. His “PodKats!” podcast can be found at reviewjournal.com/podcasts. Contact him at jkatsilometes@reviewjournal.com. Follow @johnnykats on X, @JohnnyKats1 on Instagram.