No one in the Aydin family is thrilled about matriarch Jennifer’s viral Jersey Mike Subs’ fiasco — starting with Dr. Bill.
“Bill’s not happy about it,” the “Real Housewives of New Jersey” star told Page Six in an exclusive interview Wednesday, admitting that the plastic surgeon “told [her] not to post the video” that garnered instant blowback.
Though Bill — whom Jennifer described as “the least confrontational person” — witnessed part of what went down, he didn’t think she needed to tell her more than half a million Instagram followers about it.
“When I got back to our group, everybody was so disgusted with the behavior [of the Jersey Mike’s employees and customers]. Everyone was all amped up,” she recalled.
“I was like, ‘They were so rude! That’s not nice to be rude. You shouldn’t be rude to a customer. You don’t know who I am. … But you should just not be rude in general.’ So then I’m like, ‘I’m just gonna post it so that everyone can see their bad behavior.’”
But as Jennifer acknowledged, “It backfired!”
Her advice? “Listen to the husband, ladies! Husbands know best.”
During our chat with the Bravolebrity, she rehashed the “debacle” and provided more context, explaining that she was simply trying to make sure her five children were fed and that their large group didn’t miss their early New Year’s Day flight to Aruba.
But amid an unsatisfactory experience at a Jersey Mike’s restaurant located inside the airport, Jennifer decided to film both the staff and those waiting in line with her. She then vented about it all in a selfie-style video that got her branded “vile,” “disgusting” and “pretentious.”
The 47-year-old explained in the footage that she was “so mad” after waiting in line “for what felt like forever,” claiming that the woman behind her had ordered after her and got her food first.
“The 80-year-old that was working there, I mean, the amount of time she took to cut that bread was almost as much as we were waiting [in] that line. Jeez,” she said with a smirk, pointing out that the older employee “couldn’t hear” and “everything was slow.”
Jennifer admitted to adding another sub to her order while the elderly woman was already making one for her, prompting said worker to tell her she had to “wait [in] line again.”
Jennifer then asked the man behind her — whom she described as a “freakin’ jerk,” “loser” and “a–hole” — if she could add another item to her order, to which he allegedly responded, “I mean, it’s kind of ridiculous.”
That’s when she “started recording them.”
The man in question, a law professor, informed her he would sue her “for every piece of fake jewelry” she was wearing if she posted what she was filming online.
“My husband’s a medical doctor, OK?” she barked back. “A–hole. And all my s–t is real. I am a f–king celebrity, you a–hole! … A–hole!”
Jennifer insisted to us that a “fan” who was farther back in the line interjected, “She’s a celebrity, for Christ’s sake!” as the two were arguing.
“So when she said it, in my angst and my fury, I repeated it, too, because he was so rude to me when I was just an innocent bystander,” the reality personality claimed, adding, “It shouldn’t matter who I am. You shouldn’t be rude to people.”
Regarding her comments about the “80-year-old,” Jennifer told us, “I should never have called the woman old or whatever. I was just sad that she was working. I really was. And she was so rude afterwards. She was like, ‘I’m not gonna give you your sandwich!’ I was just like, ‘OK. OK, woman. OK, lady. I’m sorry. I just wanted my one sandwich.’”
She admittedly “can’t believe how it’s gotten out of hand like this,” referring to all the criticism her “sensationalized” video has received.
“But I’m very cognizant of it now,” she insisted. “I have to be reminded that being — not a celebrity, but a public figure — I have to make sure that I’m very cautious with what I post. It’s going to be a huge lesson for me. I’m going to post very, very minimal and especially not a complaint — ever.”
She continued, “And I’m sorry to the Jersey Mike’s people that I put them on blast after, but it really was just in response to them being so rude and dismissive to me.”
The “RHONJ” star was scheduled to set sail on a Fans at Sea cruise with her castmates Teresa Giudice and Dolores Catania in September for the line’s “Wives on the Waves” getaway. But after Jersey Mike’s-gate, Jennifer was removed from the gig.
A rep for Fans at Sea told Page Six Tuesday that the company “made adjustments” in order to “keep the cruise enjoyable and welcoming for all guests.”
The rep added that their “priority is to create a drama-free, fun-filled experience for everyone.” Jennifer told us she understood.
“At the end of the day, I could not expect them to take backlash on something that I did,” she said. “If it’s one thing I am, it’s a very rational, reasonable person, OK? I get it. I did this.”
She went on, “I did not think it was going to land this way. Obviously, I thought that I was going to put this gentleman’s bad behavior on blast and maybe I’d get an apology from Jersey Mike’s for being so freakin’ rude and dismissive. But no, I don’t want that anymore! I don’t want that. Actually, I’m sorry. I’m sorry about the whole debacle. I really, really, like, really am. It wasn’t worth it.”
If given the opportunity to do things differently, Jennifer — who is “not proud of the behavior” she displayed — said she would air her grievances on either her podcast or Yelp.
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