NBA legend and TNT basketball analyst Shaquille O’Neal wowed employees and customers alike when he paid the tab for every diner at an upscale New York City restaurant on Sunday night.
Dining with a “mystery woman” at the Chelsea hotspot Jue Lan Club, O’Neal ordered Beijing chicken, shrimp tempura and the restaurant’s signature chicken satay.
“She did all the ordering,” an unnamed source told Page Six. Afterward, the former star center left the wait staff “the biggest tip they’ve ever received.”
“And to top that off, he paid for everyone’s check [who was] dining at the restaurant,” the source added. The amount topped out at more than $25,000.
O’Neal, 50, asked the staff not to apprise customers their meals had been purchased by him until after the couple left the restaurant.
The four-time NBA champ has a net worth of around $400 million, but his six children will have to earn their way through life, he said in a 2021 podcast.
“My kids are older now. They kinda upset with me – not really upset – but they don’t understand,” he told the Earn Your Leisure podcast at the time.
“Because I tell them all the time. We ain’t rich. I’m rich,” he added.
“You’ve got to have Bachelor’s or Master’s [degrees] and then if you want me to invest in one of your companies, you’re going to have to present it… bring it to me, I’ll let you know,” O’Neal explained, reminding his kids, “I’m not giving you nothing.”
“I don’t care if you play basketball. I don’t care about none of that,” O’Neal continued.
“Listen, I got six kids,” he said, referring to sons Shareef and Shaqir, as well as daughters Me’arah, Amirah and Taahirah. “I would like a doctor, somebody to own a hedge fund, a pharmacist, a lawyer, someone that owns multiple businesses, someone to take over my business.”
“But I tell them I’m not going to hand it to you. You gotta earn it,” he warned.
O’Neal’s heart seems to be in proportion to his overall hugeness as this is not the first time he’s been generous with strangers.
Last year, the big man paid off the balance on a young man’s engagement ring who had been making installments on a layaway plan at a Zale’s jewelry store.
“I’m just trying to make people smile… That’s all.”@SHAQ helped a young man out at a local jewelry store by paying for his engagement ring. pic.twitter.com/eK8n0YHGb7
— NBA on TNT (@NBAonTNT) April 7, 2021
“I went in there to get some loop earrings and I seen the guy and he was just so shy and he was saying [to the cashier], ‘Hey, how much do I owe to pay off the ring?’ I said, ‘My man, how much is the ring?’” O’Neal said, adding the gesture “is just something I do everyday.”
“I’m into making people happy, so whenever I leave the house I just try and do a good deed. I didn’t mean for that to get out. That’s not why I do it. .. The guy just came in, he was a young kid, hardworking guy.”
“I was like, you know what, ‘Tell your girlfriend I got it, I’ll take care of it. At first he didn’t want to take it,” O’Neal recalled.
“I’m just trying to make people smile, that’s all,” he said.
Get the latest BPR news delivered free to your inbox daily. SIGN UP HERE
DONATE TO BIZPAC REVIEW
Please help us! If you are fed up with letting radical big tech execs, phony fact-checkers, tyrannical liberals and a lying mainstream media have unprecedented power over your news please consider making a donation to BPR to help us fight them. Now is the time. Truth has never been more critical!
Frank (Chip) Webster is a musician and composer, former teacher of percussion and U.S. Army Infantry veteran. He holds a degree in English from Arizona State University.
- The 2024 eclipse, a lesson in reverence and faith … and a reason to believe - April 10, 2024
- Ukraine lawmaker pleased with Dem performance, says early results from midterms ‘very good’ for us - November 9, 2022
- Casey Anthony sits for first TV interview since being acquitted for murdering her 2-yr-old daughter - November 9, 2022
Comment
We have no tolerance for comments containing violence, racism, profanity, vulgarity, doxing, or discourteous behavior. If a comment is spam, instead of replying to it please click the ∨ icon below and to the right of that comment. Thank you for partnering with us to maintain fruitful conversation.
BPR INSIDER COMMENTS
Scroll down for non-member comments or join our insider conversations by becoming a member. We'd love to have you!
12 thoughts on “Dinner guests, staff at NYC restaurant surprised when Shaquille O’Neal slaps down big bucks to pay for the house!”
Comments are closed.
I’d be surprised too, but how is this newsworthy?
What a contrast between Shaq and Lebron “No Brains” James!
hey shaq i hope you will show up sometime at my jack-in-the-box where i eat out occasionally. hope to see you soon.
Oh gee Shack, a high-end restaurant where people are quite capable of paying the bill.
How about doing that for the poor.
Nobody has a clue how generous he really is. He doesn’t advertise what he does.
Do you ever leave a $20 tip to a restaurant host? Pay the tab for a random car behind you at the drive thru?
Perhaps you could show some generosity and know the joy of being a blessing to someone.
Your point doesn’t negate rbs’ point. If I give a drink of water to someone who is hydrated it’s no ‘compassionate act’ at all.
That our society has showered people who play games [that’s why Shaq is known, not for his being a good guy and a savy financial guy] with so much $ they don’t know what to do with it, doesn’t make one of them who is generous laudable when he shares food with ‘fat people.’ [Employees aren’t ‘fat,’ of course].
However, it’s certainly NOT a strike against Shaq but of anyone making a big deal out of it. Reminds me of when Princess Di passed and was showered with accolades for her beautiful, supposedly ‘selfless’ life. And a day or two later Mother Teresa died and “wanting to be like her” dried up really quick.
First off, how do you know he doesnt?
Second you think like a typical democrat, placing your own value judgement on how someone should spend their money.
If it made the others smile and Shaq smiled, good enough all around.
He is a character, in a good way, when he does commercials they are humorous and usually sort of poking fun at himself. I like that about him. Spreading kindness and smiles just adds to that.
I love what he said about his kids, although if I was one I would be annoyed lol. If you have money then you should send your kids to college or trade school or help them find a way to learn what they love and be successful at it, like if they love food help them figure out how to do that, or if they like crafts, or want to help others maybe get a charity set up for them. That kind of thing. Not everyone is meant for getting a higher educations and that is fine we are all different and special in our own ways.
ONeal has shown that hes a man of class and compassion. He seems to live it. Its not really that hard to do when you have huge resources. Yet I still like his attitude and approach. If everyone had those resources available , Id say that you would see a totally different nation. He was kind of offensive to Orlando when he join the Lakers Club, but I guess it comes with the territory. But over all the big guy stands tall in character and ethics.
Yeah, compassion, at a high-end restaurant where those people aren’t hurting.
You really are clueless. He probably pays more in taxes than 99.5% of the citizens in this country. Moreover, the federal government wants to have a monopoly on “taking care of the poor”. And as everyone knows, they’re so incompetent and corrupt they can’t even do that well.
We all could be more compassionate to others and not be so selfish.