Row threatens Ramsay's big night in New York

The opening night of Gordon Ramsay's first New York restaurant has been overshadowed by claims of a row with staff.

Gordon Ramsay at The London is due to be launched on Thursday with a celebrity-packed party. But today there are claims that workers are considering a walkout over being denied a share of the tips.

An article on a widely read New York restaurant blog alleges the most senior waiting staff - many brought from Britain - face earning half as much as more junior workers because they are not in the local union.

The anonymous letter, on eater.com, is attributed to a worker at the restaurant. It says: "There's a potentially disastrous situation unfolding at Gordon Ramsay at The London.

"The non-union service staff (captains, maitre ds, sommeliers, the ones working 14-15 hour shifts) have been entirely cut out of the tip pool.

"The union employees ( backwaiters and waiters, the ones working an eight-hour shift each day) are getting all the tips that the restaurant makes. So, a backwaiter will be making roughly 40 to 50 per cent more than his managerial supervisor!

"Many of the non-union staff have contemplated leaving, if not already out the door."

The 45-seat restaurant, with the 90-seat London Bar, is Ramsay's first venture in the highly competitive New York City market and is costing £2.6 million. It is modelled on Ramsay's venue in Royal Hospital Road, Chelsea, which has three Michelin stars.

The restaurant and bar are part of the refurbished London NYC Hotel, formerly the Righa Royal, a few blocks from Times Square in Midtown Manhattan.

The reservations line was flooded with calls when it opened on 16 October. The venue is now accepting reservations two months in advance. A source at The London said the launch would go ahead as planned, and it was believed the letter had been sent by a disgruntled former employee.

"There's no problem, no one is unhappy and rumours there could be a mass staff walkout are untrue," the source said.