Robert Irwin has admitted to accidentally "dining and dashing" from Coffs Harbour's Jetty Pavilion. Photo / Instagram
Robert Irwin has admitted to accidentally "dining and dashing" from Coffs Harbour's Jetty Pavilion. Photo / Instagram
Robert Irwin has issued a lengthy apology online after failing to pay for his meal at a NSW restaurant.
The Australian wildlife warrior, 21, shared a video on Instagram directed at the owners of The Jetty Pavilion in Coffs Harbour, revealing his embarrassment over his recent “dine and dash” attheir eatery while road tripping along the east coast.
Irwin said he stopped in Coffs for dinner over the weekend, where he ordered a takeaway salad and quickly became distracted by a flurry of fans wanting selfies.
“I went in there, and there was a lot of people who, you know, saw me and said g’day, and wanted to have a photo. But it turned into a bit of a frenzy … It was a bit of a flurry there for a moment,” Irwin began.
“Anyway, they got the salad done super fast. I made sure I said hi to absolutely everyone. ‘Cheers, thanks so much, see ya later.’
“Then the next morning wake up and realise, I never paid for my salad! I just did the old dine and dash and didn’t even realise. I felt terrible.”
The I’m A Celebrity … Get Me Out Of Here! co-host said he quickly reached out to the venue and offered to hand over his credit card details to fix up the bill, as he had already left Coffs at that point.
“They said, ‘Don’t worry, just leave us a good review.’ I said, ‘I’ll do you one better!’,” Irwin continued.
“There are eight million of you guys on here [Instagram]. Go and support the Jetty Pavilion. They are the absolute best.
“I apologise again. Today is not the day I start my life of crime. As much as the tabloids would love that, it’s not happening.
“Cheers everyone. Love you, Coffs Harbour.”
The venue hilariously reacted to the viral video – which now has thousands of comments – on its official Instagram account, where it revealed the salad at the centre of the great Irwin dine-and-dash scandal: a $26 Harvest Bowl.
“The salad in question”: Jetty Pavilion’s Instagram account reacted to the dine and dash in hilarious fashion. Photo / Instagram
Owners Kyle Miller and Ben Hemsworth sat down for an interview with Today on Monday morning, where they assured they had no hard feelings toward Irwin for his slip-up. Quite the contrary, they say he’s brought money-can’t-buy exposure to their business and the area of Coffs Harbour.
“Unbelievable [exposure]. I was a bit in shock,” owner Hemsworth said on air.
“I was expecting just to see ‘Jetty Pavilion has a great salad’ on a Google review, and then I got a message from my daughter saying, ‘Oh my god, I saw the video!’ And my phone just lit up.”
The pair also cheekily put most of the blame on their “starstruck” waitresses.
“Some of the girls got a little starstruck and forgot to accept a payment, and they came and told me afterwards. I said, ‘Did you get his number?’” Hemsworth said, laughing.
“It’s not very common for us to get a world celebrity in the door, so we can’t blame the girls for that one. I guess he’s a good lookin’ fella,” Miller added.
The Jetty Pavilion, affectionately dubbed among locals as “the pav”, also responded directly to Irwin’s Instagram post, thanking him for the shout-out and signalling their plans to rename the salad in question.
“Thank you soooo much for visiting our venue, we’re honestly blown away,” they wrote.
“Being from a humble little coastal town, it means the world to us to have you stop by.
“We’re all huge fans, and truly appreciate the shoutout. We can only imagine how hard it must be to enjoy a quiet meal without being bombarded, so thank you again for choosing us, and no stress about missing the payment! We’d absolutely love to have you back anytime ... we might even have to name a salad after you.
“Seriously can’t get over this, we LOVE the Irwins!”
Irwin’s family, including older sister Bindi and mother Terri, further joined in on the fun, with Bindi writing, “Followed. Yay @jettypavilioncoffs.”
Terri added, “Can’t wait to try the Robert Irwin salad special next time I’m in Coffs!”
For those curious, the infamous Robert Irwin Harvest Bowl is brimming with all the buzzy healthy ingredients: turmeric cauliflower, quinoa, avocado, pickled veges, cherry tomatoes and roasted sweet potato, topped with a tahini dressing and sprinkled with alfalfa sprouts.
