Serena Williams has publicly criticized a Michelin-starred restaurant in Paris after alleging that she and her children were denied entry. The former tennis champion took to X (formerly Twitter) to express her frustration with The Peninsula’s rooftop restaurant, L’Oiseau Blanc. Williams described this as the first time she had been refused access to a dining establishment while accompanied by her family.
In her post, Williams wrote, “Yikes @peninsulaparis. I’ve been denied access to a rooftop to eat in an empty restaurant of nicer places but never with my kids. Always a first.” She added, “Who doesn’t make room for a queen?” Some responses on social media accused the restaurant of prejudice, with one user commenting, “You were denied access because they were serving prejudice. Shame on them.”
In response, The Peninsula Paris issued a statement through its social media account, explaining that the restaurant was fully booked that evening. “Dear Mrs. Williams,” the hotel wrote, “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 also fully reserved.”
Williams, who arrived in Paris in late July, was in the city for the Olympic opening ceremony, where she carried the torch alongside notable athletes such as Rafael Nadal and Carl Lewis. The retired tennis star, who stepped away from professional tennis after the 2022 US Open, has a storied Olympic career, with four gold medals to her name. Williams won gold in women’s singles at the London 2012 Olympics and secured three more gold medals in women’s doubles with her sister Venus at Sydney 2000, Beijing 2008, and London 2012.
