Serena Williams Says She Was Denied Access to Paris Restaurant With Her Kids Amid 2024 Olympics
Serena Williams took to X to say she wasn’t allowed to dine at a place in Paris, and the restaurant has responded.
Serena Williams is calling out a luxury hotel in Paris, France, claiming she and her family were denied a table the establishment’s rooftop restaurant amid the 2024 Paris Olympics.
The retired tennis superstar — who served as a torch bearer during this year’s games — took to X (formerly Twitter) on Monday to slam The Peninsula Paris, claiming they wouldn’t give her a table despite there being open tables available.
“Yikes @peninsulaparis I’ve been denied access to rooftop to eat in a empty restaurant of nicer places but never with my kids,” Williams, 42, wrote. “Always a first. #Olympic2024.”
Williams shares two daughters with her husband, Alexis Ohanian: 6-year-old Olympia and 11-month-old Adira.
Shortly after, The Peninsula responded to Williams’ tweet and claimed that they did not mean to offend her, and that they were, indeed, booked up — even if the tables appeared empty at the time.
“In response to Mrs. Williams’ tweet, for whom we have the utmost admiration and respect, as we do for all our esteemed guests, we can only reiterate our deepest apologies for her perception of tonight’s situation,” the establishment said in a statement to ET on Monday.
“Today, August 5th, our rooftop bar was indeed fully booked, and the only unoccupied tables at that time belonged to our gourmet restaurant, L’Oiseau Blanc, which was also fully reserved tonight,” the statement continued. “She has always been, and will always be, more than welcome with her family at The Peninsula.”
