Is Giorgio Baldi the New Nobu?

The Malibu hotspot isn't the pap walk it used to be.

July 28, 2026

Many important pop culture moments have happened in the Nobu Malibu parking lot.

In 2021, Jennifer Lopez and Ben Affleck [kissed](https://elink249.stringermalibu.com/ss/c/u001.lbBvvH2Xgk3-KQ8TEflfH7__n6HnmslrBDGqwZszfzvkJjLqJVDxM3qQdVusFib0vxVb0ahM8znRP9GKahFHRxurJrZ2BSCsTbcK8ri1C0C-jeA7fjFJjUBWAP2EQT_YbmRT8shqM--s6GnZFm9qFiEu41AvnRolepXTAjCBzWMeCFE7lpSPgC4eFnifXd95KGOgkjcEGrYc2CsTrQlygG4_ctj-vL5hPSBBaMgfsNNMF00xfgfPjRsVkVMn3fCTGOxpkLNUq4OORbeYtDS8k_snAzAhgXXg2SYm5-p0uo3QGmntzuBunZRD6Qux06d9VO6uTc2R-wEnkpcrzduX5Q/4qs/hnEkFuuER1KJ7m4S0Pmkbg/h7/h001.6w07a16aeXgILQEW-pfOKbQpIpqVB8WDlOcFx6pXzJQ) next to the valet stand, announcing to the world they were dating again. After Will Smith slapped Chris Rock at the Oscars, his [first public outing](https://elink249.stringermalibu.com/ss/c/u001.HXiLlpKF7NDHMp-4eUHWMCUIcSEMsyQoIamQZL5Z5NBcocGn8oOWD1TfltgEsCwz4CI6gRdUmKAvmPOL6EjvM0ouN8MtaKaGek8d9V0ijMj3-Rd1DioiexLG6IXIA8uAK03X7qkSf-wEhCilWzkt961GEqM6EVn7LiukEPdXuHfJ9EkDexqeTofMnN1lZoqdoWK6vBSsm39f-XBNeUIJyTFx4reszDhbd7AlxR0-KaJ-DliO_t503AVM39R6PgRWz1dFQtNWn2eMNn0tvvQLUbLLZwqT0iJCrzr_Mj6x5OmkeOOexORPNOcd-Q8wfRjwIAAv3y4QUpgvygDdbeM-81ho9hiSnFlQEc6pdGeD73ExKiMJryQQyDF4_oDSDzr_/4qs/hnEkFuuER1KJ7m4S0Pmkbg/h8/h001.G9YrJHQOWc4xKFhSgDuBThe6esDqeIXw5Yc3W5GCz-s)was to Nobu Malibu, his right hand clasped tightly around Jada Pinkett-Smith’s.

In the McDonald’s across the street, paparazzi take up the patio tables most nights, watching the Nobu parking lot until close. They know that for westside celebrities needing to communicate something wordlessly to the public, the only place is Nobu Malibu.

Or, increasingly, Giorgio Baldi. The Italian hole-in-the-wall on West Channel Rd. has been an unlikely paparazzi hotspot since 2010, when [Rihanna became obsessed with it.](https://elink249.stringermalibu.com/ss/c/u001.HXiLlpKF7NDHMp-4eUHWMNEHV3bdj3eNhoifx4N8iow3xjh3OpwyeJ6FU8cEM1JiWLJ3-RSDPOmUCaa25sjdMTdZWoB10GZd5BV4b8VxEhkB8hIs-U4NoDt_PqT-P-2LI46uNs0FJi_YN2N_nPvkgWOE8qgmg6ImG3lvM_tzJrSFW1ma8lF0uA0_hpUoh_4-PvQVvX4682pHc4pYn0W9zYcUSplM7ofNxQuWsLILyZY7M0Ksn9u-0zigTH75hv9eo7d41rI2zNxTaKBJX4nOTQdyvWAW6pdcBkhiufLFu0U/4qs/hnEkFuuER1KJ7m4S0Pmkbg/h9/h001.p2xNJiD4y6CLX1T682Xs_fhXX9GqLP_Sy3I-NEnFrDo) But only recently have its trademark hedges emerged as the preferred backdrop for breaking celebrity news. A scientific review of my perception shows all the good couples hard-launch there now.

[Meryl Streep](https://elink249.stringermalibu.com/ss/c/u001.HXiLlpKF7NDHMp-4eUHWMNPuoiBT9Sm6mjPgUpVsrRlJzOdTFnGqMnP3zw03C80pDQuKMcY9SiwTeaC5HbEN2U1tsv_MiYz9-C3L_8cUKV3FoIkdgfkXx2hkCfqTaY-LKOLkrw7BNi9qKMdMpFX3Admv-7ZH7MAYUQzrpaE-ekaeNpxXNP2cyqmYlJbuXww1Y8pDV-HU4jGzGy-H72JbW0n8dLvc_N_Qq7L8cufEAJDHGyN7aa7PJqNefGxloJs0VoPIs_6M5FrVbfBxY5MsVauYpiy4zYpmyS7v43LwzJVYSkgfM-NjbNBGKCkaRfek/4qs/hnEkFuuER1KJ7m4S0Pmkbg/h10/h001.peoIYpk6a-tIDgULGYUKAdyC04PFpKcl2xfhZIwVbxM) and Martin Short. [Kim Kardashian](https://elink249.stringermalibu.com/ss/c/u001.HXiLlpKF7NDHMp-4eUHWMCUIcSEMsyQoIamQZL5Z5NDHhmQx1dRMXTHCHoBojeu3ye0WOnZUVKvGsZ2p2qKzGAXFX4-nAqesm5m-qmqgh6FTz_1qvUsnlvd9516AUahcKO_p0OXh-pTttlLOJ27w6nX8nne5pAuYtjydFRQfhZTv5MXbC3oR8RITeJmc_HfJYiIiqKTxWkwBUexeQukR8BZVvkV9XNGjtEAy4AfsNat07mj9Bm1wp9gh-db1OIEsb3YLzCFEn5fEwPR18G-bo2MTqIQsmAW8A5r7B85UAiUcbpgecl9OwpzxoPKe1Wj9nv6pNhSQM68EVFaeMAeG6LAAAGtLhAKsOEHOPwTWPpI/4qs/hnEkFuuER1KJ7m4S0Pmkbg/h11/h001.BSxprIzowxG_p_xffpkR6P0HT3XGQ2N-06lEGa6u-0A) and Pete Davidson. [Chris Rock](https://elink249.stringermalibu.com/ss/c/u001.lbBvvH2Xgk3-KQ8TEflfH21prOUMdSWcBx4LQ1JfNTtcenpvNJF-N5ygEjqu_4JNsdrpMjzFBuuN2NEtPoybarGrlvQ6o93KYOU2z3BFuEl2LUbL5qTvO19RC-KsS4ewUgq4mvtFygtoISDF4FUGQOSy3p1w_auJ1t1oqEJIAW86iRs4wOwPVdQ56amIgwhOhj6NZybO44B0X256YUVr9iQgxt0UE1Shqamr63CB6byYVCjBwvmnbiU9HfDtnxerDQFm9ntmVmgbkN2irwJk-6FVB2WM58ddN2zmf5D7Ez3WkVqTXnje0a5XOC6BIgf_8U_4qA5F7anpW5Q-v5izKw/4qs/hnEkFuuER1KJ7m4S0Pmkbg/h12/h001.GzsFKLtszNoCHR5QLvgsFNENNIDhf8OputcyDyu7k6s) and Lake Bell. It was only two years ago that Rock chose Nobu Malibu for his first public outing with [new girlfriend, Carmen Ejogo.](https://elink249.stringermalibu.com/ss/c/u001.lbBvvH2Xgk3-KQ8TEflfH60H_S8jwMgTzcXjzhN-MGKIApwrwXxzoogB9Vt17bVqzfsdCjpDgaO2NVL5dVXsLDtvBshdVqZ_6xNrsIYoO593PszuRd0pWPdf3_T6v8wT3q4NHZ6Mh7ugY3hyhOBojGmUXTAxXBM6Y1B9kj50G8DlTOORAMG1fNyk4Dt-ic62Eg2pL9x8kAtU-EuyocV75WUbg5eA0hx4TiCR3HYMAzxdRE_21pQchk9pZL3XhpzobrEH45wNylSabiZ1Zj6PgAPZj6uwCf5u2YAhPrexpuedMt8Aay6vHZIEpq8RS9l0/4qs/hnEkFuuER1KJ7m4S0Pmkbg/h13/h001.SRjtvE1WU1NY9_9iwcs_NDZf_U1lKh6Oy_99CoUDldg)

Maybe he’s avoiding Will Smith. Or maybe, Nobu Malibu has lost its luster.