Nobody’s food was safe when Luciano Pavarotti was around.
The late tenor — whose voice and waistline were equally renowned in opera history — once stole a juicy steak right off of Henry Kissinger’s plate during a 2001 award dinner honoring the late Joe DiMaggio, a witness told Page Six.
The now 97-year-old former Secretary of State was set to present the Joe DiMaggio Award to the Italian singer when Pavarotti saw his chance to strike, renowned foot specialist Dr. Rock Positano said.
The two were seated next to each other on a dais when a woman approached Kissinger for a chat, Positano recalled.
Pavarotti, who was known for his impish sense of humor, suddenly realized that his dinner mate was ignoring a juicy filet mignon on his plate so “in one swooping stealth maneuver snatched the filet mignon from Henry’s plate and started to enjoy the fruits of his labor,” Positano told Page Six.
“While Henry continued to chat, Luciano polished off the filet mignon.”
A few minutes later, a clearly peckish Kissinger was shocked to discover his plate was empty and looked around attempting to find out who was the thief.
The doc says that he refused to squeal on the steak stealer because of “Brooklyn street etiquette.”
This prompted Pavarotti — who died of cancer at age 71 in 2007 — to wink and give a knowing nod for not singing. The doctor says that other people on the dais also saw the culinary crime but no one snitched.
Positano is the director of the Joe DiMaggio Heel Pain Center at Hospital for Special Surgery and the co-author of “Dinner with DiMaggio,” which details his friendship with the Yankee legend.
An assistant to Kissinger told Page Six that “Dr. Kissinger has no recollection of this.”