Chicago deep dish staple Lou Malnati’s Pizzeria is not too happy with Netflix’s newest show, “Emily in Paris.”
The restaurant sent out a media statement today expressing their disappointment with the series, which threw an insult at the chain in its premiere episode.
Created by “Sex and the City’s” Darren Star, “Emily in Paris” stars Lily Collins as the titular character, a marketing executive and Chicago native who accepts a position to Paris and must learn to adapt to her new environment. When she discovers that her French colleagues don’t like deep dish pizza in the first episode, she quips, “Oh no, you must have gone to Lou Malnati’s.”
In their statement, Lou Malnati’s called the jab “heartless,” pointing out that the COVID-19 pandemic has been especially hard for restaurants to survive.
“While the writers of ‘Emily in Paris’ may not be fans of deep dish pizza or Lou Malnati’s in particular, generations of Chicagoans would strongly disagree,” the pizzeria wrote. “Malnati’s is always the first to participate in good-natured banter with pizza lovers from New York or California. However, it feels especially unkind to disparage anyone during these difficult times, given that most restaurants are struggling to hang on.”
Owner Marc Malnati also commented, saying, “We’ve been serving Chicago’s favorite Deep Dish since 1971. When Netflix’s ‘Emily in Paris’ writers chose to take a shot at Chicagoans and our pizza to try to get a laugh, it felt heartless and not humorous in the midst of Covid-19.”
Netflix and Star did not respond immediately to Variety‘s request for comment.