A Paris hotel has apologized to Serena Williams after its 5-star Michelin restaurant turned her away, despite being empty at the time.
Serena took to X (formerly Twitter) on Monday to complain that she was turned away from The Peninsula Hotel restaurant.
“Yikes @peninsulaparis I’ve been denied access to a rooftop to eat in an empty restaurant of nicer places [sic] but never with my kids. Always a first.”
A Community Note added context to her post, saying the retired tennis champ was not denied access. “Rather, the restaurant was fully booked.”
Yikes @peninsulaparis I’ve been denied access to rooftop to eat in a empty restaurant of nicer places ? but never with my kids. Always a first. ?#Olympic2024 pic.twitter.com/lEGJR5WoEn
— Serena Williams (@serenawilliams) August 5, 2024
In response to her post, the hotel wrote on it’s official X account that they were in fact “fully booked” that night.
The Peninsula Hotel wrote: “Dear Mrs Williams, Please accept our deepest apologies for the disappointment you encountered tonight.”
“Unfortunately, our rooftop bar was indeed fully booked and the only unoccupied tables you saw belonged to our gourmet restaurant, L’Oiseau Blanc, which was fully reserved. We have always been honored to welcome you and will always be to welcome you again.”
Serena, who speaks French fluently, is currently in Paris with her husband, Alexis Ohanian, and their two daughters Olympia, 6, and Adira, born August 2023.
Serena joined other stars who were torchbearers in the Olympics’ opening ceremony.
The tennis legend has won four Olympic gold medals during her career.
