ABOVE: Brittney Hopper reports on the tip Irish rock star Bono left for 80-year-old restaurant manager Bella Haig.
TORONTO — U2 singer Bono surprised a waitress last week with the biggest tip of her 50-year career.
The Irish rock star left Bella Haig a $150 cash tip after eating at Canter’s Deli in West Hollywood at about 3:00 a.m. last Friday.
“Wow, I lucked out. I was thrilled,” said Haig, 80. “I was surprised it was that much.”
Haig, who has served customers at the 24-hour eatery since 1965, told the local CBS news program that Bono asked her to recommend an appetizer.
“I went to the back and I said this guy doesn’t look Jewish but I’m going to get him some matzah ball soup with carrots and noodles and chicken,” she recalled.
Haig said Bono ate all of the soup and then asked her for another suggestion. She recommended the Reuben sandwich with fries and onion rings.
While Bono ate, Haig’s co-workers informed her that she was serving one of the biggest rock stars in the world. (U2 was in Los Angeles for five nights of concerts.)
“I was happy to wait on him,” she said. “He looks better, actually, in person than he does on stage.”
Haig, who is the manager of Canter’s, has served a number of celebrities over the years, including Rock Hudson, Paul Newman, Anna Nicole Smith, Rodney Dangerfield and rock band Van Halen. The famous deli has also served Mick Jagger, Guns N’ Roses, Taylor Swift and U.S. president Barack Obama.
Haig said she spent Bono’s tip — about 750 per cent of the bill — to take her family out for dinner.
The meal was evidently memorable for Bono, too. The singer mentioned his visit to Canter’s at Saturday night’s concert.
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