At approximately 6 p.m. Thursday, 14-time NBA all-star Shaquille O’Neal was spotted heading into Funk ‘n Waffles on Marshall Street, said Stone Dow, an employee at the restaurant.

O’Neal approached Dow as he was heading toward the restaurant to start his shift.

‘I was walking back to work,’ Dow said. ‘And then I saw a taller gentleman walking toward me. He inquired about the shop and I told him what we had to offer.’

Shortly after, a mob of people followed O’Neal and one unidentified partner into the restaurant, said Kyle Corea, another employee at Funk ‘n Waffles.

O’Neal is in Syracuse with his team, the Phoenix Suns, for an exhibition game at the Carrier Dome at 7:30 tonight. The Suns will face off against former Syracuse player Carmello Anthony and his team, the Denver Nuggets.

‘It was awesome seeing Shaq,’ said Staci Schweitzer, a junior in The College of Arts and Sciences. ‘I come here a lot, and it was so weird to just see him sitting there, hanging out with people.’

As for the food, the 7-foot-1, 325-pound center ordered a buttermilk waffle and an egg omelet with pork sausage and cheddar cheese.

‘He kind of just ordered what he wanted,’ Corea said. ‘He didn’t order off the menu.’

Corea said cooking for O’Neal was a unique experience.

‘Well, he ordered the omelet, but I just made him a three-egg omelet, because I figured it needed to be in big proportions,’ he said.

ctorr@syr.edu

Published on October 16, 2008 at 12:00 pm