Former tennis champion Serena Williams recently shared what was meant to be a heartwarming cooking session with her daughter Olympia on social media, but fans quickly zeroed in on one controversial detail — Williams feeding her dogs while preparing a family meal.
The moment was particularly exciting, as many wondered if the Compton native was a traditional mom who raised her kids with old-school values.
The video, which showcased the 43-year-old WTA legend teaching her 7-year-old daughter culinary skills, started innocently enough.
Williams was shown teaching Olympia how to cut red and green peppers, making a roux, and explaining cooking techniques as they followed Williams’ beloved gumbo recipe. When Olympia asked if she could taste it, Williams responded that she couldn’t because it was “hot.”
Eventually, Williams warmed up to letting her daughter help, and Olympia was seen stirring the roux, saying, “Yummy.”
Many followers initially praised Williams’ cooking abilities.
One Instagram user commented, “Oh, you’re a cook cook!! Anybody who picks up the meat with their fingers to flip it is serious!”
The video showed Williams confidently handling ingredients – dicing onions, warming olive oil, cleaning chicken, and seasoning it thoroughly before cooking.
However, the mood shifted dramatically when, after chopping up some sausage, Williams took a piece of meat and gave it to her smallest dog mid-preparation.
The situation escalated when her larger canine entered the kitchen, and Williams playfully fed it as well before returning to her cooking. With her hands, she even flipped the sausage, but the video notably did not show whether or how often Williams washed her hands after these interactions with her pets.
This moment sparked immediate backlash in the comments section.
“Gurl, no pets in the kitchen,” wrote one concerned follower.
Another added, “I Need shrimp & crab added NO DOGS in kitchen.”
The criticism continued with comments like “Nope… lost me with those dogs in the kitchen…” and “don’t feed the dog while you’re cooking, PLEASE!”
Several users specifically highlighted hygiene concerns.
“Not after you fed them dogs and went right back to yo meal prep lol” and “Damm she feed the dog with her fingers and prepared the food just nasty,” some chimed in.
Not everyone was offended, however. Some defenders pointed out, “Her dog. Her kitchen,” while others seemed unfazed, noting, “Dogs standing by to catch extra and ‘clean up’ anything that hits the floor. Iykyk.”
For many fans, no amount of family sweetness could overcome their visceral reaction to seeing pets in the kitchen during food preparation.
As one commenter succinctly put it, summarizing the sentiment of many: “I don’t care who kitchen, love pets and have one, I don’t want no pets in the kitchen with dog hair flying and stuff. That is why I don’t eat everyone food. But it looks good and healthy!”
