Restaurant visit by X Factor pop star

X FACTOR winner Joe McElderry added a little spice to a night out. Joe dropped in to Ocean Road Indian restaurant Jai Ho in his home town of South Shields this weekend for close family friend Anne Scott’s 80th birthday. 

The 18-year-old tucked in to steak, rice and salad while the rest of his party feasted on traditional Indian grub. 

Joe posed for pictures and signed autographs after his meal, but there was one fan who was particularly excited to meet her idol – little Jasmine Hussain. 

Her dad, Jai Ho owner Khamal, called her to say he was in the restaurant, and the seven year-old, who goes to St Joseph’s RC Primary, in Jarrow, begged for an opportunity to meet him. Mr Hussain, from Boldon, said: “I rang Jasmine to tell her Joe was in and she was over the moon. 

“She asked if she could come down to the restaurant, and I said she could as long as she didn’t bother him while he was eating. 

“So she actually wrote him a letter. It said: ‘Dear Joe, can I please, please have an autograph and a photograph with you, love Jasmine.’ We gave him the letter with the bill and he just beamed and said ‘where is she?’ 

“He went running over to her straight away. What a fantastic lad – he didn’t even give it a second thought. He made her feel so special.” 

Mr Hussain, who runs the restaurant with business partner Mo Miah, added: “We treated him as any other customer. He was a very, very pleasant lad.” 

Bosses at the restaurant, who backed Joe in the X Factor, had already written to the Newcastle College student to offer him its private room. But his party booked in under another name and were in the main restaurant. 

Now Mr Hussain has invited them back for a free meal.He added: “Our customers were very good and left him alone. For him to come to us is fantastic. We backed him throughout the competition.” Joe’s mum Eileen Joyce said: “I’d just like to say thank to Jai Ho for all their support.”