A rash of table flipping across the country has major restaurants in a panic. The cost of damages alone is running into the tens of thousands. Woman of all ages are taking their aggressions out on tables in public places, specifically, in major food establishments. The finer the restaurant, the more the table flipping.
“It a phenomenon like I’ve never seen before…at least not outside the State of New Jersey, until now,” one Virginia restaurant manager stated, who asked to have his name withheld.
The reasons behind the table flipping are as diverse at the women themselves. A wife of a well known state politician explained the rationale behind her recent table-flipping behavior. “I was at this upscale Italian restaurant. After dinner, I ordered the tiramisu and coffee. They brought me Sweet-n-Low instead of Splenda. I was so mad, I flipped the table,” she says with a casual shrug. “Hey, I want it how I want it, you know?”
Martha, a librarian in Ohio, explained that her recent public, table-flipping temper tantrum was due to her too-quiet love life. “My husband and I have been going through a dry spell and I was sick of it. We were sitting at a high-top at the bar in Appleby’s and I was so frustrated by our love life, I heaved the table over and screamed at him that I needed it and needed it bad.”
Martha has since reported that the sex is much better now.
“It’s very freeing for a woman to flip a table,” one nationally renowned therapist asserted. “The release of aggression in such a manner allows for the true emotions to pour forth. When a woman flips a table, it’s a serious matter. It needs to be taken seriously because she needs to be taken seriously.”
But is table flipping a cry for help?
“Not necessarily,” the therapist goes on to say, “attempted suicide is a cry for help. Kleptomania is a cry for help. Table flipping is a physical manifestation of a woman who needs to be heard, whose needs need to be met. She’s taking a last stand. It’s a way for a woman to assert that she is a force to be reckoned with. Flipping a table says to the world that this woman can stick up for herself and refuses be victimized by society’s antiquated values on how a “real” or “classy” woman should behave.
But restaurant owners beg to differ. In these tough economic times, restaurants are barely keeping afloat and the added cost of replacing broken items, the liability of anyone getting hurt, and the insurance hikes due to table-flipping just might be last straw that sends these eateries into bankruptcy.
“Please, if these women don’t stop smashing our glasses and destroying our furniture, we will be forced to close our doors forever,” one steakhouse owner lamented. “Today, it’s table flipping. Tomorrow, it’s breaking the windows. Or smashing bottles of Cristal. Where will it end?”
If one is to understand this rash of behavior, one must trace it back to its roots. Table-flipping is not new. It’s a long held tradition that can be found in certain cultures, but it has since crossed into the mainstream. This crossover had its pivotal moment during an episode of The Real Housewives of New Jersey. During the season finale, “Theresa” hosted a dinner party at an exclusive restaurant. Tensions ran high. A confrontation between “Theresa” and “Danielle” escalated. “Theresa” reached her breaking point and flipped a table.
To viewers and fans alike, the scene was thrilling and scandalous, sending shock waves through America. The message? You can be classy and beautiful and rich, but you don’t have to take anyone’s crap. And millions of women across the country heard that message loud and clear.
As for the worried restaurant owners, we don’t see the end of table-flipping anytime soon…not as long as we have re-runs.
The Real Housewives of New Jersey airs on BravoTV. To view the final flipping episode, check your local listings, however, it is recommended that you watch the NJ season in its entirety first.
–Diva Kimberly Llewellyn
“The Quest for the Holy Veil” — A novel; Berkley Books
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Have you ever flipped a table? Had an emotional outburst in a restaurant or other public place? Share you stories in the comments section now!
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