He may be worth $19bn and widely considered the crown prince of the internet era, but Mark Zuckerberg has been branded a scrooge in Rome when it comes to tipping.

Lunching out with his new wife, Priscilla Chan, on their honeymoon, the Facebook co-founder Zuckerberg ran up a not-so-massive bill of €32 (£25) at the restaurant Nonna Betta this week, neglecting to add any tip at all, according to reports.

The story was broken by Italian daily Corriere della Sera, which ran the headline "Zuckerberg in Rome – a €32 bill and no tip", adding that Chan had been nicknamed 'Chansaccodesoldi' on the internet, which roughly translates as "She's got a sack of cash".

The couple stuck to antipasti of deep-fried artichoke and just one dish of seabass, artichoke and tomato ravioli, washed down with water and a pot of tea.

The restaurant's owner, Umberto Pavoncello, defended Zuckerberg from the barbs, claiming the billionaire was "in a hurry".

"They were really in love, eating from the same plate of ravioli," he said. After recognising him, Pavoncello went up to Zuckerberg and "I said, in English, 'But are you ... ?' and he replied, 'Yes.'"

"I am seriously considering renaming the fiori di zucca – deep-fried courgette flowers – on the menu as fiori di Zuckerberg."