Johnny Depp celebrated his dramatic libel victory over ex-wife Amber Heard by enjoying curry in Birmingham with friends – and footing a massive £50,000 bill.
The actor, 58, was joined by his musician friend Jeff Beck, 77, and about 20 others in their entourage as they took charge of the elegant Varanasi restaurant on Sunday evening.
The group enjoyed an Indian feast prepared especially for them along with cocktails and Rosé Champagne.
Lavish: Johnny Depp celebrated his dramatic libel victory over ex-wife Amber Heard by enjoying curry in Birmingham with friends – and footing a massive £50,000 bill
Depp was in the UK to join Beck on his tour and previously appeared during his friend’s concerts at Sage Gateshead in northern England, Glasgow and the Royal Albert Hall in London.
The Hollywood legend was in Birmingham to accompany Beck on stage for his performance at the city’s Symphony Hall.
He has been basking in the public spotlight after successfully suing his ex-wife, Heard, 36, for $50 million over an article she wrote in 2018 that claimed she was a victim of domestic violence.
He won the trial by jury in Virginia last week, which means he is set to receive millions in damages from Heard.
The celebration: The 58-year-old was joined by his musician friend Jeff Beck, 77 (pictured left) and about 20 others in their entour as they took charge of the elegant Varanasi restaurant on Sunday night
Colleagues: Depp and his entourage arrived at the high-end Varanasi market at around 7pm, where the actor posed for photos with the staff and their friends and family sworn to secrecy about his visit.
The Picnic: The group enjoyed an Indian feast prepared especially for them along with cocktails and Rosé Champagne
Deep and his entourage arrived in Varanasi at around 7pm, where the actor posed for photos with the staff and their friends and family who had sworn to secrecy about his visit.
The restaurant was closed to all other customers while Depp and his group were given full place, leaving around midnight.
Muhammed Hussain, COO of Varanasi, which is one of the UK’s leading Indian restaurants, told MailOnline: ‘We got a call out of the blue on Sunday afternoon saying Johnny Depp wanted to come over to eat with a group of people.
I was shocked and at first I thought it might be over. But then his security team arrived, inspected the restaurant and we left them the whole place because we were worried he might be bothered by other diners.
Mr. Hussain added: “He was a very nice guy, he spent a lot of time talking to the staff, our friends and our family and was happy to take pictures with them. You would not have imagined that he was such a big star. He had plenty of time for all of us.
Mr. Hussain revealed that the chefs in the restaurant prepared a special banquet for Deeb and his group that included appetizers of shish kebab, chicken tikka and tandoori king shrimp.
The main course consists of butter chicken, paneer tikka masala, mutton karahi, and large shrimp bhuna. All food was accompanied by naan, rice and salad.
Depp chose not to go for traditional Indian sweets, and finished his meal with panna cotta and cheesecake.
MailOnline understands that the bill for the entire evening came to around £50,000 which Depp paid.
The Tour: Depp was in the UK to join Beck on his tour and previously appeared during his friend’s parties at Sage Gateshead in northern England, Glasgow and the Royal Albert Hall in London
MR. HUSSAIN: We had to promise that we wouldn’t reveal the final bill but let’s put it that way; Money wasn’t an issue, and it was easily in five figures. We made more money visiting Deb than we did on our busiest night of the week, a Saturday when we have about 400 people.
In addition to the food, there was champagne, wine and all kinds of drinks being dropped. Deb and his group had a great time. They loved the food, the ambiance of the restaurant and the service we provided. It was a real honor to be here.
Mr. Hussain revealed that Deeb was very impressed with the fare he requested, which included a selection of the banquet.
He added, “He obviously knows something about Indian food and enjoys it. We made sure not to make it too spicy so that Johnny Depp could enjoy a variety of flavours.
Happier times: Johnny wins a defamation trial after suing his ex-wife, Amber Heard, for $50 million over an article she wrote in 2018 that claimed she was a victim of domestic violence (pictured in 2015)
Mr. Hussein recalls that the most surreal moment of the night was when Deeb broke away from his party and sat with him for 20 minutes in his office.
“He said he wanted a little break from everyone,” said Mr. Hussain, and sat in my office, watching people in his group on CCTV and asking me a lot of questions about it.
I didn’t ask him about Amber Herd or the case. It was just a nice chat with a very humble guy. I still squeeze myself because I never dreamed of Johnny Depp being in my office to have a conversation about how CCTV worked in a restaurant.
Case: Amber (who was photographed in court reading the verdict), $100 million was contested by claiming that Depp’s attorney Adam Waldman made defamatory statements by calling her allegations a “hoax.”
“Friendly web trailblazer. Extreme pop culture advocate. Reader. Organizer.”
More Stories
Looking for an Online Casino? Here are 5 Signs that It’s Legit
Owamni in Mpls. Awarded Best New Restaurant at the James Beard Awards
James Patterson says it’s hard for white men to get jobs in Hollywood – Deadline