Serena Williams Claims She And Her Family Were 'Denied Access' To Paris Restaurant

A Parisian restaurant has responded to Serena Williams’ claims that she and her children were refused entry to while in town for the 2024 Olympics.

On Monday evening, the tennis champ claimed she’d been turned away from the luxury hotel The Peninsula’s rooftop restaurant, despite it being “empty”.

“Yikes,” she wrote on X. “I’ve been denied access to rooftop to eat in a empty restaurant of nicer places [...] but never with my kids. Always a first.”

Within two hours, The Peninsula responded, claiming that their rooftop bar was “fully booked”, which was why she was denied entry.

“Please accept our deepest apologies for the disappointment you encountered tonight,” they said, addressing the gold medallist as “Mrs Williams”.  

“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.”

They added: “We have always been honoured to welcome you and will always be to welcome you again.”

Variety also apparently spoke to a “staffer” at L’Oiseau Blanc, who insisted: “When she came there were only two tables available and they had been reserved by clients of the hotel.

“My colleague didn’t recognise her and feels terrible, but he told her what he would have told any other client, which is to wait downstairs in the bar for a table to become available. That was absolutely nothing personal.”

While Serena is not competing in the 2024 Olympics, she’s been part of several stand-out moments, most notably carrying the iconic torch during the Opening Ceremony and appearing in the stands during a number of key events.