'Emily in Paris' bakery owner says he feels 'humiliated' by bad reviews from the Netflix show's fans
- The owner of a bakery that features in "Emily in Paris" spoke out about online criticism he's faced.
- Thierry Rabineau said he felt "humiliated" by negative reviews and only wanted to do his job.
The owner of a French bakery featured in "Emily in Paris" said he felt "humiliated" by the online criticism from fans of the Netflix show.
Thierry Rabineau, who runs La Boulangerie Moderne, a 19th-century bakery on Rue des Fossés Saint-Jacques in the 5th arrondissement of Paris, told Insider that while only about 5% of the online reviews were negative, they were still merciless.
The bakery has become popular with tourists following the 2020 debut of the show, which follows a young American woman's adventures in the French capital. It's suffered poor reviews, but was nevertheless embraced by many Netflix subscribers.
Rabineau, who took over the bakery eight years ago, said the show had boosted sales significantly, but he added: "I didn't ask for any of this."
He said some came in thinking "our products are going to be incredible," he told Insider. "But we never claimed to be anything else other than your classic neighborhood bakery."
The shop has 4.5 out of 5 stars on Google, but some reviews have been particularly harsh.
One customer wrote: "The famous croissant from 'Emily In Paris TV show' is the worst croissant I tasted in Paris and it is expensive."
Rabineau, who is also vice-president of the union for Parisian bakers, told Insider he sells croissants for 1.30 euros each (about $1.44), and he believed that was a fair price given rising costs.
Another review said: "Don't go there, it's all buzz and nothing else. Pastries are disgusting," while another reviewer, who said they visited the bakery in December, wrote: "It doesn't even deserve the taxi cost."
But while the negative reviews have weighed heavily on Rabineau, others have come to his defense.
"I'm profoundly disappointed in some of the customers' comments who confuse reality with fiction," one person wrote. "The series 'Emily in Paris' is the one we should question, it doesn't honor France, makes us look like has-beens, and make people doubt the true professionals."
Rabineau now wants to be rid of Google reviews entirely.
"Google imposes on us something we didn't ask for," he said. "I'm going to remove our name from Google completely in the end."