Lauren Sanchez shares pointed statement about kindness after restaurateur Keith McNally calls her ‘revolting’

‘Lead with kindness, root for other people, cheer for those you love. Just honestly wish everyone the best’

Lauren Sanchez has appeared to subtly respond to the comments New York restaurant owner Keith McNallymade about her.

Earlier this week, McNally took to Instagram to reveal his thoughts on Jeff Bezos’ fiancée, using various photos of the Amazon founder and Sanchez together while taking jabs at their appearances. “Does anybody else find Jeff Bezos’ New wife - Lauren Sanchez - ABSOLUTELY REVOLTING?” he wrote in his caption.

“What an ugly and F***ing SMUG - LOOKING couple they make. Is this what having 1000 Billion dollars does to people?”

While McNally refers to Sanchez as Bezos’ wife, only their engagement has been officially announced.

McNally, who owns more than a dozen restaurants, soon discovered that social media users did not share his views, with many quick to defend the couple under the post.

Sanchez has since taken to her own Instagram Stories, specifically sharing a few statements about kindness. One quote posted to her Instagram Stories on Tuesday 16 April read: “People will love you. People will hate you. And none of it will have anything to do with you.”

Another addition to her Instagram Story included a quote from fashion designer Rachel Zoe, which read: “Lead with kindness, root for other people, cheer for those you love. Just honestly wish everyone the best.”

Neither of the two messages directly mentioned McNally, however, the posts came shortly after McNally’s.

After McNally’s post, many celebrities took to the comments section to defend Sanchez from the restaurant owner’s negative remarks.

Chrissy Teigen praised Sanchez, who is known for her work as an entertainment reporter and news anchor.

She wrote: “She’s actually incredibly dynamic, accomplished and kind, and everyone who knows her would say the same.”

Chef Colin Fassnidge added: “You work in hospitality yet... You lack it... ”

Journalist Stephanie Ruhle simply wrote: “No. I think she’s accomplished, kind, smart and loved.

Sanchez and Bezos went public with their relationship after his divorce from MacKenzie Scott.

Bezos and Scott were together until 2019 and their split led to one of the most expensive divorces in history, for a reported $38.3bn (£30.79bn).

By 2020, Bezos and Sanchez were dating publicly before becoming engaged in 2023.

It is not the first time that the restaurant owner’s temper has reared its head, as he has repeatedly taken aim at James Corden over the years.

Taking to Instagram last year, he shared pictures of Adele’s appearance on Carpool Karaoke and simultaneously slammed her and Corden.

In the post, McNally said Adele looked like a “scary Cruella de Vil” and dubbed the segment “cringe-inducing”.

He wrote: “Corden and Adele are brilliant performers, but like many brilliant performers they’re profoundly inauthentic.

“As this carpool was part of Corden’s last Late Night Show, both he and Adele Went to Town being ‘honest’ about themselves. It was sickening.”

Corden and McNally’s previous feud stemmed from the comedian’s visits to his Balthazar restaurant.

The comedian previously took umbrage with the eatery upon finding a hair in his food back in June 2022. While the manager was extremely apologetic, this allegedly didn’t placate Corden, who turned “very nasty” and proceeded to demand free drinks, according to McNally.

Despite the incident, the comedian returned to the eatery that October and this was not an uneventful visit either.

This time, he had a problem with a yolk-only omelette ordered by his wife, which he sent back for allegedly containing egg white.

At the time, McNally accused him of “abusive behaviour” towards his staff and described him as a “tiny cretin of a man” as well as the worst customer he’d encountered in the restaurant’s 25-year history.

He deemed Corden’s behaviour so bad that he banned him from the restaurant. McNally has since U-turned on his decision to ban the Late Late Show host and claimed Corden called him to “apologise profusely”.

The Independent has contacted representatives for Sanchez and McNally for comment.