The Real Housewives of New York City ruin everything. On a recent episode of the show, one of the stars, Luann de Lesseps, is taken out on the town by author Coerte Felske—their destination: Chinatown hot spot Apotheke on Doyers Street. The staff pull out all the bells & whistles for the cameras, which at Apotheke translates to huge fireballs lit by the owner himself.
That owner is 40-year-old Albert Trummer, who was busted early Sunday morning for performing a similar pyrotechnic performance as he did on the show, which the Daily News notes included pouring whisky, brandy and vodka on the bar and igniting it. While they report he's now being held without bail for reckless endangerment, the NY Times reports that he was released and the bar reopened Sunday night; he told them, “My intention was not to hurt anybody. I’m an artist. I’m a mixologoist. I’m a cook. But I’m not a pyrotechnic maniac.” FDNY Chief Fire Marshal Robert Byrnes says the stunt, which was performed near curtains, put the bar's patrons at risk. See for yourself in this Real Housewives clip:
Allegedly upon his arrest, Trummer said, "It's just a show," but the bar regularly lights up—their website declares: "it's a stage, a chemistry lab, a theater. Trummer throws liquid fire from flasks." When we visited Trummer in 2008, he was perfecting the art of pouring flaming absinthe, but allegedly the FDNY wasn't tipped off to these antics until last month when they heard about it being featured on the reality show.
