Several top line hospitality professionals are coming to James Corden's defense after he was branded "abusive" by a New York City restaurateur.
Stratis Morfogen, who's opened 40 New City City restaurants, including Phillippe Chow, told TMZ that the "Late Late Show" host is pleasant with his staff and always has been.

The famed restaurateur recalled a 2018 post-Grammys event at his Brooklyn Chop House restaurant. James, he said, was a gracious tipper and was laughing it up with the bartenders and staff.
Further, Todd English, called James "incredibly personable" from his interactions. In fact, the Olives chef said the TV host has been "absolutely lovely" to everyone at his restaurants over the years.
The dissection of James' behavior comes after Balthazar owner Keith McNally publicly banned the host from the restaurant, calling the "Late Late Show" host "a tiny Cretin of a man." In fact, the restaurateur said James is "the most abusive customer to my Balthazar servers since the restaurant opened 25 years ago."
After the publicly ripping, James called Keith and "apologized profusely," prompting the restaurant owner to remove the ban.
"Anyone magnanimous enough to apologize to a deadbeat layabout like me (and my staff) doesn't deserve to be banned from anywhere. Especially Balthazar," Keith said on Instagram, adding, "all is forgiven."
On Wednesday, Oct. 18, Keith noted that he had second thoughts about calling out James.
"Feeling strange about the James Corden thing. On the one hand, he was definitely abusive to my staff, on the other hand, I feel really sorry for him right now. Like most cowards I want it both ways," he said on social media.