Senator Bernie Sanders was in no mood for picture-taking or glad-handing when he arrived in town last Thursday for the DNC meeting. John Konstin, longtime owner of John's Grill in Union Square, says the senator and 2020 candidate for president was "cranky" and "rude," and stood out among the Democratic hopefuls for his unpleasantness.

Politico got the initial scoop from Konstin, who says his restaurant hosted a bunch of candidates over the weekend and that House Speaker Nancy Pelosi was "pure class" when she dined there. But Bernie allegedly arrived with 15 members of his staff, refused to take any pictures, was rude to the servers, ate some lobster bisque and left.

"He lost my vote," Konstin says.

SFGate followed up with Konstin who confirms the story and says, "He was just rude, not friendly. I think he was just hungry and didn't want to be a politician."

Reportedly Sanders' wife "apologized" to staff as the group left the restaurant.

Long a bastion of power lunches and dinners for the Bay Area's politicos, John's Grill and Konstin are no strangers to entertaining big names. But Sanders' behavior was clearly memorable.

As restaurant spokesperson Lee Housekeeper tells SFGate, it's out of character for Konstin to say anything negative about any of his patrons. "Bernie had to be in a terrible mood," Houskeeper says. "Anyone in the public eye needs to understand when it's time to order room service."

Photo: Mx. Granger