Tyrese Gibson has met with sheiks, hosted Snoop Dogg's 45th birthday party, and toured the world, both as an R&B singer and while promoting the Fast and The Furious franchise he stars in, but there's one person he freaked out over meeting. Like straight-up zero chill, and he doesn't care who knows it.
"You'd think I was meeting Will Smith," he laughs.
It was Kim Lopdrup. The Kim Lopdrup. If that name doesn't sound familiar, the man's title will: He's the CEO of Red Lobster.
"He's looking at me, like, 'dude, calm down,'" Gibson explains. "I said, 'you don't understand, sir. You don't understand. You are the brainchild of this place I have a love affair with!'"
Gibson isn't joking. Seeing the brand's glowing logo off the highway helped convince him to buy his house in the Valley four years ago, he uses "Lobsterworthy" as an adjective, and he eats there so often he had his accountant go through his receipts, realizing he dropped about $7,000 in two years there. That freakout inspired the brand to hire him for a commercial, which Gibson wants to be clear about: "I'm not another work-for-hire celeb that Red Lobster gave a script to — I put way more money in their pockets than they put in mine," he says.
Between meetings, he explained the real reason he became obsessed with the chain (prepare to have all the feels), why his backyard's hotter than any buzzy new restaurant, and how he works off all those Cheddar Bay biscuits.
His Red Lobster Order Is Out Of Control.
Gibson orders lobster bisque — "with extra lobster, because I like to see all the chunks in it" — followed by 3 to 4 pounds of snow crab legs, with one request: "Hit me with two orders at a time, so they're fresh and hot," he says.
Sometimes he switches things up with fried butterfly shrimp or fish, but he always, always goes for the Cheddar Bay biscuits — no matter how fit he's got to be for the next Fast and Furious film.
"I don't care if it's unhealthy or not. My tastebuds get the best of me," Gibson says. "They are some of the most disrespectful biscuits ever made. ... It's just disrespectful that they taste that good."
The Real Reason For His Obsession Will Give You All The Feels.
As much as Gibson gushes about the menu, it's more than that. "I grew up in a broken home with lots of layers of dysfunction I won't get into, because I don't want to be a buzzkill, but there were four of us kids, raised by a single mother, and we were chugging along. We barely had any money, barely had food every step of the way," he says. "When my mother would get in a better situation financially, she would take us all to Red Lobster. It's the place I go to that always makes me feel better."
His Go-To Drink Isn't At All What You Think.
He feels the same way about apple juice. "When we had apple juice in the house, it meant we had a little more money," Gibson says. "Now, when I have it, there's no one in the world happier than me."
Martinelli's his go-to brand, and these days, he keeps it well-stocked, ordering it just about everywhere he goes (the "endless shrimp" chain included).
"I've been around sheiks and royals, and no matter where I am, as long as I've got apple juice, I feel successful," he explains.
He Loves Carbs Even More Than You Do.
Gibson wakes up around 11:30 most days, so he usually misses breakfast. When he does catch it, he skips eggs and goes straight for the sides. "I love buttered wheat toast, bacon — pork bacon or turkey bacon — hash browns, oatmeal," he says. "I eat a lot of carbs."
Lunch tends to be healthier. It's typically salmon with mashed potatoes. "Not because it's healthy; I love the way salmon tastes," he says.
Dinner is where he goes all out, and if he's not dining on pounds of snow crab legs, he'll dine in his backyard Benihana — yes, he had a replica of the hibachi restaurant built in his backyard, along with a pseudo-Starbucks, recording studio, nightclub, salon, spa and swimming pool — or enjoy something his chef whips up, like shrimp alfredo with garlic bread.
Work Defines His Workouts.
Gibson hits the gym as often as he can, but he doesn't let it rule his life. "I never claim to be the most in-shape person," he says. "I work out project by project, so I'm not driving myself nuts trying to work out every single day."
Leg day's a lot more appealing when you're referring to snow crabs, not squats.
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