NYC Bartender Calls Out Wall Streeter For Allegedly Grabbing Her Butt

An NYC bartender posted an "open letter" on her Facebook page calling out a Wall Street asset manager for allegedly grabbing her bum.

Laura Ramadei, who is also an actress and bar tends at Lucky Strike in SoHo, wrote that Brian Lederman put his hand on her butt and said that he would like to take her "to go."

"You came into the restaurant where I work and ordered a Stoli on the rocks," she wrote on her Facebook page. "When I asked you and your companion if you'd be eating, or needing anything else from me, you put your hand - ever so gently - ON MY ASS and asked if you could take me 'to go,'"

She then named Lederman and his place of employment, and later told New York Post that he had placed three fingers on her left butt cheek.

So far, Ramadei's open letter has been shared more than 4,000 times on Facebook.

The New York Post reached Lederman by telephone. He denied touching her butt.

"I've grabbed plenty of girls' asses in my life. But I've never grabbed hers," Lederman told the Post.

He did admit to making the "to go" comment.

"I clearly remember making a joke when the girl said, ''What would you like?' I kiddingly said, 'I would like you to go with nothing on it.'"

Lederman was "furious," and told the Post that he would make sure that Ramadei never gets another job in NYC.

Lederman is a managing director at asset manager Swiss Performance Management & Truehand AG, according to his LinkedIn.

We were unable to get in touch with Lederman via telephone.

Here's Ramadei's full letter [via The Gothamist]:

An open thank you note to the stranger who put his hand on my ass and asked if he could take me "to go":

Dear Brian,

You came into the restaurant where I work and ordered a Stoli on the rocks. When I asked you and your companion if you'd be eating, or needing anything else from me, you put your hand - ever so gently - ON MY ASS and asked if you could take me "to go". When I immediately stepped away and said "Sorry, what?" you probably gathered that I was and am not receptive of such advances from customers. We were in a family-friendly restaurant, around 6:30pm, and I was wearing a loose-fitting, long sleeve shirt, jeans, and no makeup...so I'm not sure where the confusion arose as to what kind of service you were being provided. You left soon after, leaving a signed credit card slip and a two dollar tip (see picture included!). Your name is Brian Lederman. I found you, instantly, via a quick Google search online. I looked at your face on Linked In, the World's Largest Professional Network. You work at Swiss Performance Management and Truehand AG, in Investment Management. Of course you do.

I work as a bartender, and have for more than five years now. I graduated NYU with honors, and have at some point held down every conceivable part time type job including but not limited to food service, administration, and even temp work at firms such as yours. So far, bartending allows me the most flexibility to pursue my artistic career, while comfortably covering my basic living expenses, including my outrageously high student loan payments. I have a good job that I'm grateful for. The environment is low key, I have incredibly supportive coworkers and managers, and - in general - the clientele is nice.

But I still hate being a bartender. Over the years my knowledge and skill set have expanded, but I seem to be getting worse at tolerating the "service" part. I deal with incredible amounts of entitlement, condescension, and drunk nonsense. And at a bar, it is impossible to ignore the fact that misogyny is alive and well. I can't tell you how many times people have treated me horribly and I've memorized or photographed the names from their credit cards, fantasizing about internet revenge. But every time I've been tempted in the past (even after verbal attacks, physical affronts, or sexual harassment) I've stopped myself and let it go.

So congratulations, Brian! You've done it! You broke this tired ass camel's back. And though this is obviously a public shaming, I truly don't mean this as an attack. Maybe - just maybe - via the intimately connected internet world, my post will reach you, and you'll learn something about how hurtful and upsetting a small comment or gesture might be. Or at the very least, maybe a Facebook passerby will read this and more deeply consider how they treat women, how they treat servers, and/or how they treat other people in general. And thank you. Without your inspiration I wouldn't be quitting my job today, and endeavoring a better chapter of my life.

Love,
Laura

p.s. Everyone else - please be kind to your server. If your drink took a while, it might just be because your bartender was rage crying about misogyny in the bathroom. Also because if you're not nice to her, she just might memorize the name from your credit card, find you online, hunt you down, and pee in your bed while you're sleeping.

p.p.s. I'm looking for work to sustain me until all of my acting dreams come true! Something that requires only 30ish flexible hours a week and that covers NYC rent and NYU student loan payments. Open to all ideas and input.

p.p.p.s. Thanks for reading.