Paris restaurant hits back at Serena Williams after she claimed a five-star restaurant turned her and her children away despite it being completely empty
A five-star restaurant in Paris has criticised Serena Williams after she claimed she and her daughter were refused entry despite the restaurant being completely empty.
The 23-time Grand Slam champion took to X to publicly complain about the treatment she received at The Peninsula Hotel on Monday after she was “denied access to the roof to eat”.
After she posted a photo of the upscale restaurant with her complaint, the restaurant responded to X two hours later.
“Dear Ms. Williams, We sincerely apologize for the disappointment you experienced this evening,” the Peninsula team wrote.
Unfortunately, our rooftop bar was indeed fully booked and the only free tables you saw were those of our gastronomic restaurant, L’Oiseau Blanc, which was completely reserved.
Serena Williams and her daughter Olympia were denied entry to a Paris hotel on Monday. Pictured: Serena Williams, Alexis Ohanian and their daughter Adira River attend the opening ceremony of the Paris 2024 Olympic Games at the Trocadero on July 26, 2024
The Peninsula Hotel apologized to the tennis star just two hours after she posted her complaint on X. Pictured: A general view of the dining room during the Amfar Gala at the Peninsula Hotel in Paris on June 30, 2019
The five-star Paris Peninsula Hotel claimed they were fully booked at the time
‘We have always felt it was an honor to welcome you and will always feel it is an honor to welcome you again. The Peninsula Paris.’
Williams fans were quick to criticize the hotel for turning down the tennis legend. One X user asked: “How can someone be turned down when they’re Serena Williams… lol”
“Good thing you didn’t have to waste money on that,” another fan commented.
‘You better not go there, the food is substandard. Unfortunately I’ve had to pay for it a few times,’ said someone else.
“It’s Serena Williams, get her a table ready!” a fourth commented.
This came after the tennis legend expressed her annoyance at the treatment in a post which read: ‘Ouch @peninsulaparis I have not been allowed to go to the roof to eat in an empty restaurant or a better place but never with my children. Always a first.’
But not all social media users were on the star’s side, with some calling her stance “entitled” and “privileged.”
An X user said: ‘Wait, are we really telling this place that they should have figured it out themselves because she’s a celebrity? No. If they’re booked, they’re booked and they’re damn right to be mad that they didn’t figure it out because “I’m special.”
Another chimed in: ‘I love that people here are saying she deserved special treatment and should have gotten a table at a restaurant that was fully booked. Jesus Christ, what a privilege, lol’.
Someone else said: ‘There is literally nothing more privileged than walking into @peninsulaparis during the tourist and Olympics and expecting a table to be ready for you’.
Fans flocked to support the star, while others claimed she was “entitled” to
Pictured: Serena Williams and her daughter Olympia Ohanian attend the Women’s Artistic Gymnastics Team Final during the fourth day of the Paris 2024 Olympic Games at the Paris Arena on July 30, 2024.
Williams competed in various Olympic disciplines in Paris with her six-year-old daughter Olympia and her family.
She was also one of many famous names present at the opening ceremony of the Games on July 26, sharing a boat with Rafael Nadal, Carl Lewis and Nadia Comaneci.
Williams described the ceremony as “unforgettable.”
“From being part of an amazing opening ceremony at the Paris Olympics to riding in the boat in the rain – and it was pouring! So much so that my eyelashes fell off instantly,” she joked on X.
In addition to her Grand Slam victories, Williams has won four Olympic gold medals, including in singles and doubles at London 2012.
