Famous Food

Famed DJ Steve Aoki's wallet is about to get fatter -- cause after years of legal battles he's finally defeated his stepmom for control of his late father's Benihana fortune.

Steve and his sister, model Devon Aoki, were each awarded 50% of their dad's trust by a judge this week ... meaning they get ownership rights to Benihana and a chunk of restaurant income.

But they don't get it just yet ... according to the Aoki family lawyer neither gets paid until their 45th birthdays. Steve is 36 and Devon is 31.

Benihana founder Rocky Aoki married Keiko Ono Aoki in 2002, and his kids feared she'd cut them off when he died -- so Rocky amended his will to give his descendants sole control of his trust.

Keiko's been challenging the will ever since Rocky died in 2008 -- and actually won in a lower court. This week's ruling overturned her victory.

Arnold Schwarzenegger is threatening to crush the company he says jacked his image to sell cheap nutrition products ... according to a lawsuit obtained by TMZ.

Schwarzenegger claims the Arnold Nutrition Group slapped his name and photo all over its products -- things he would NEVER endorse because they haven't been subjected to rigorous testing.

Arnold makes it clear in his lawsuit ... nobody gets his endorsement unless he BELIEVES in the product ... and unless he gets paid for the full value of his name and reputation.

Arnold says the company is defrauding the public. He wants at least $10 mil ... but he hasn't asked for a total recall. Yet.

Just days before throwing down at Dr. Dre's billionaire party -- Tyrese literally drove HOURS to Vegas with his pal The Game ... inside the world's first tricked-out $350,000 "Rolls Royce" van ... just to pick up a couple slices at the Bellagio.

Tyrese tells TMZ, he picked Game up Wednesday in L.A. and made the day trip in his brand new customized ride -- what he's calling the world's first ever "Rolls Royce Ghost Sprinter" van.

The whip's stacked too -- complete with several Apple TVs, a PlayStation 4, Xbox One, Mac Mini, custom Rolls rims and grill, crazy neon "Transformers" lights, a phone charger at each seat, Internet, and even a heated floor.

Tyrese says as soon as they grubbed down at Bellagio they immediately hightailed it back to L.A. Because, why not.

Anthony Bourdain has probably eaten every single food on the planet, but he actually was able to choose the one thing he would want for his last meal ... and it's really pretty simple.

Our photog caught up with the "Parts Unknown" host in New York City Thursday ... where he gave us his thoughts on so many amazing topics: whether he hates any foods, drinking absinthe and moonshine, his favorite country to eat in ... and, of course, his death row meal.

Robin Roberts picked up some unexpected side-effects -- good and bad -- when she got a life-saving bone marrow transplant 2 years ago ... and says it's all her sister's fault.

Robin's sis Sally-Ann donated the bone marrow to help Robin treat a rare blood disorder.

The transplant gave Robin a fresh infusion of stem cells ... but Wednesday in NYC -- she told us she also inherited some of her sister's physical traits.

"The Wolf of Wall Street" served up a steaming bowl of hibachi BS during the Benihana scene ... so says Steve Aoki (whose father founded the restaurant) ... but he doesn't care, 'cause it's GREAT for business!

Aoki -- one of the highest paid DJs on the planet -- was bouncing out of Hooray Henry's when he told us the Scorsese flick fudged the facts to make the story sound better -- claiming his dad Rocky Aoki had nothing to do with Jordan Belfor's arrest.

But Steve says he isn't tripping over facts (or lack thereof) -- he's just PUMPED that his dad and the restaurant got a shout out in an Oscar nominated flick!!

Now who's ready for some tempura ice cream?!

Chris Brown is locked up for Easter -- but he'll still get to enjoy a delicious holiday meal ... courtesy of the Virginia justice system.

TMZ spoke with the Northern Neck Regional Jail -- where Chris is being held until his Washington D.C. assault trial begins on Monday -- and it sounds like he'll be having a mostly traditional holiday:

-- Turkey Ham (no pork out of respect for Islamic inmates)
-- Yams
-- Cabbage
-- Bread Pudding
-- Cookies

We're told bible study and ministers will be available for anyone who wants that kinda thing. Unclear if Chris will partake -- but a little prayer couldn't hurt before the trial.

We don't know for sure if Justin Bieber was stoned Sunday ... who are we kidding, he dropped more than $240 on fast Mexican food -- of course he was.

Justin and crew rolled up to celebrity hotspot Pinches Tacos on the Sunset Strip in West Hollywood on his way to Coachella and dropped $185 on a South of the boarder feast, consisting of:

-- 13 steak tacos
-- 9 chicken tostadas
-- 8 chicken tacos
-- 3 taco plates
-- 1 steak burrito
-- 1 chicken burrito
-- 4 orders of chips and salsa
-- 10 bottles of water
-- 9 Mexican sodas

Justin waited in a Mercedes van while someone from his crew picked up the grub and left a $55 tip, on Justin's credit card.

Ese Pinches Bieber.

The Lannisters aren't the only ones flush with cash -- sources tell TMZ, "Games of Thrones" stars Gwendoline Christie and Pedro Pascal feasted at a $1,200 dinner with friends Friday in Miami.

We're told Christie (who plays Brienne of Tarth) and Pascal (The Red Viper) were in town for the HBO Latin American 'GoT' tour, and stopped by South Beach hotspot Bâoli to try the most expensive burger in the city -- just days before Sunday's terrifying "Royal Wedding" episode.

It's called the Bâoli burger and it costs $65. It's made from Kobe beef with heirloom tomatoes, foie gras, and black truffle slices, topped with a quail egg.

We're told Christie and Pascal split the burger, but also ordered the burrata, tuna tartare, several sushi rolls, filet mignon, and the sea bass. They also ordered a bunch of fancy drinks -- and lucky for them ... HBO picked up the tab, we're told.

But the best part ... no one was brutally murdered!

The owners of "Amy's Baking Company" returned to "Kitchen Nightmares" Friday to defend their volatile viral episode from last year -- and just like before, it was a total trainwreck.

Amy and Samy Bouzaglo were on the show last night and miserably attempted to tell their side of the story -- specifically regarding their vile comments on Facebook (which they claim were hacked.)

For those who missed it ... Gordon Ramsay walked off "K.N." for the first time last year -- after the baking company owners refused to accept criticism for things like pocketing waitstaff tips and picking a fight with a customer.

Although Amy and Sam insist they were hacked last year ... history repeated itself.

So 2 doctors walk into a bar, buy it, they try to get on "Bar Rescue," one of them taunts the wife of the show's host, diagnosing her with a "Grade A va-gee" ... and then sue because the host beat the crap out of him.

Stop us if you've heard this one, but if not, here's the lawsuit. Dr. Paul Wilkes bought Sand Dollar bar in Las Vegas with another doctor. They weren't doing so well and made a play to get on the popular Spike TV show.

According to the lawsuit, a producer got in touch with them and said the way to get on the show was to act outlandish. As part of the audition process, producers sent host Jon Taffer's wife, Nicole, to Sand Dollar. Dr. Wilkes says he was goaded to hit on Mrs. Taffer.

Nicole ordered a Sex on the Beach at the bar, when Dr. Wilkes bellied up and dropped cheesy pickup lines, including ... "Probably my most impressive trick is just from looking at the bend of your arm. I can tell you what your vagina looks like."

The good doc went on ... "So, if you bend your arm, and go like that, that's like Grade A va-gee. If someone bends their arm and it's all like jacked up and, then, like you know they have the elephant ears, which is foul."

Jon Taffer then made HIS move ... according to the lawsuit, Taffer had been watching the filming outside and came rushing into the bar, called Dr. Wilkes a pervert and a scumbag, and then smashed the drink Wilkes was holding into his face.

Wilkes claims when his friends tried restraining Taffer he threw a haymaker at him ... which apparently was too much because Taffer began hyperventilating and fell to the floor." Dr. Wilkes says he now has migraines, nausea, vomiting night terrors and crying spells.

But there's a slight problem -- we pulled the clip from the episode Wilkes is referring to and unless the editors at "Bar Rescue" are magicians, none of it backs up his battery claims. Watch it for yourself.

Mr. T has poultry priorities ... which is why he made sure to visit a fried chicken staple in New Orleans Friday -- and he came bearing gifts.

The folks at Willie Mae's Scotch House tell us the 80's icon passed out "Mr. T in Your Pocket" key chains to the staff ... and took pics with all comers.

We're told T and his party ordered fried chicken, catfish, red rice and beans ... costing a grand total of $60 -- plus a $25 tip.

The employees at Uncle Bubba's Seafood & Oyster House weren't sent packing empty-handed ... TMZ has learned they were given a business card and a list of restaurants in the area that are hiring. Better than nothing, right?

As TMZ previously reported, Bubba's -- the restaurant at the center of the Paula Deen racist controversy -- closed down Thursday morning out of the blue ... with some employees finding out on Facebook and others hearing the news from the restaurant once they arrived at work.

One employee told us they were paid through Wednesday and got vacation pay along with two weeks severance.

The employee said the whole ordeal was particularly hurtful, since so many staffers stuck up for the Deen family during the controversy -- some patrons threw food at them and they still defended Paula.

Uncle Bubba's Seafood & Oyster House -- the place where Paula Deen's empire crumbled -- just closed for good, and the way employees found out is just shocking.

The company did NOT tell its employees in an open meeting or face-to-face. The workers showed up this morning only to find the sign down and appliances being removed from the joint.

The only explanation was posted on the restaurant's Facebook page this morning -- "Thank you for 10 great years. Uncle Bubba's is now closed."

People were pissed off, including one woman who says, "My mother worked there for over 8 years and no one called her!!! My fiance also worked there no one called him, in fact a UB manager called him LAST NIGHT to get his availability for next week!"

Another wrote, "My mother put in some hard work for years with you & she finds out when she shows up for work this morning to be escorted by a police officer to get her belongings."

You may recall ... the GM of Bubba's sued Paula ... and during her depo Paula recounted the story where she once used the N word to describe an African American man who held her up.

We reached out to Deen's rep ... so far, no word back.

Krayzie Bone may have concocted the smartest business plan of all time -- sell munchies to stoners WHILE THEY BUY WEED.

The Bone Thugs-n-Harmony rapper says a fan gifted him a personalized vending machine ... and it inspired him.

Krayzie says he's in talks to put the machines in a few L.A. stores -- including weed dispensaries.

He's really serious about it. He's already ordered more vending machines for the launch.

Of course the machines will be filled with stoner favorites -- Funyuns, Pop Tarts, Twinkies.