Alison Roman Apologizes to Chrissy Teigen and Marie Kondo For 'Tone Deaf' Remarks

Food writer Alison Roman has issued a formal apology to Chrissy Teigen and Marie Kondo after she criticized their businesses.

On Monday, the cookbook author, 34, shared a statement on social media, expressing her regret over the "tone deaf" and "disparaging" remarks she made about the two women in an interview published last week.

"I need to formally apologize to Chrissy Teigen and Marie Kondo. I used their names disparagingly to try to distinguish myself, which I absolutely do not have an excuse for. It was stupid, careless and insensitive," Roman began. "I need to learn, and respect, the difference between being unfiltered and honest vs. being uneducated and flippant."

"The burden is not on them (or anyone else) to teach me, and I’m deeply sorry that my learning came at Chrissy and Marie's expense," she continued. "They've worked extremely hard to get to where they are and both deserve better than my tone deaf remarks."

Roman explained that she's reflected on "why I said what I said." The remarks, which sparked outrage from Teigen and Kondo's fans online, included Roman calling Teigen's Cravings website a "content" farm, while also claiming Kondo "sold out."

Continuing her apology, Roman asked, "Why couldn't I express myself without tearing someone down? I definitely could have, and I'm embarrassed I didn't? Among the many uncomfortable things I've begun processing is the knowledge that my comments were rooted in my own insecurity. My inability to appreciate my own success without comparing myself to and knocking down others -- in this case two accomplished women -- is something I recognize I most definitely struggle with, and am working to fix. I don't want to be a person like that."

The renowned New York Times columnist added that she's "not the victim" and her "insecurities don't excuse this behavior." Roman also appeared to respond to how some people claimed her remarks exemplified white privilege and were racially charged as Kondo is Japanese and Teigen is half-Thai.

"I'm a white woman who has and will continue to benefit from white privilege and I recognize that makes what I said even more inexcusable and hurtful," Roman wrote. "The fact that it didn't occur to me that I had singled out two Asian women is one hundred percent a function of my privilege (being blind to racial insensitivities is a discriminatory luxury). I know that our culture frequently goes after women, especially women of color, and I'm ashamed to have contributed to that. I want to lift up and support women of color, my actions indicated the opposite."

Roman went on to point out how her mistake is "part of a broader, related discourse about cultural appropriation in the food world, and who gets to be successful in this space." She also apologized to "anyone reading who has been hurt by my actions or comments (past or present) to know that I am listening and I am sorry."

"I commit to being open and receptive to this conversation as it continues and to accept the criticism that is coming my way and try to do better," she added.

She then said that while it's "no one's obligation to accept my apology or to help me improve," she shared her email for people to send her feedback or "express their anger."

Roman concluded her lengthy statement by reiterating her thoughts and apologizing again to Teigen and Kondo.

"I'm grateful to those who have already begun having difficult, important conversations with me in private," Roman said. "I will do my best to remain honest and not shy away from discussing these things in public down the road -- though I intend in the future to keep innocent parties out of it."

"I'm deeply embarrassed and I'm sorry to everyone I hurt with my insensitivity, especially to my friends and colleagues who are being held accountable for my ignorance that was not their own," she declared. "Thanks for reading."

Teigen later responded to Roman's apology on Twitter, saying "it never once crossed my mind for u to apologize for what you genuinely thought!"

Though the model admitted Roman's comments especially "stung" because they came from a fellow food writer, Teigen explained in detail how the two "are alike in many ways" and how she has learned she can't say "whatever" pops in her head.

"Eventually, I realized that once the relatable 'snarky girl who didn't care' became a pretty successful cookbook author and had more power in the industry, I couldn’t just say whatever the fuck I wanted," Teigen wrote. "The more we grow, the more we get those wakeup calls."

See her Twitter thread, above.

Roman's apology comes just a few days after she received backlash for her harsh comments about Teigen and Kondo in an interview with The New Consumer published on Thursday.

Roman slammed Teigen and her cooking empire, saying, "Like, what Chrissy Teigen has done is so crazy to me. She had a successful cookbook. And then it was like: Boom, line at Target. Boom, now she has an Instagram page that has over a million followers where it's just, like, people running a content farm for her."

"That horrifies me and it's not something that I ever want to do," Roman continued. "I don't aspire to that. But like, who's laughing now? Because she's making a ton of f--king money.

As for Kondo, Roman said the "Tidying Up" star "decided to capitalize on her fame and make stuff that you can buy, that is completely antithetical to everything sh's ever taught you… I'm like, damn, bitch, you f--king just sold out immediately! Someone's like 'you should make stuff,' and she’s like, 'okay, slap my name on it, I don't give a shit!'"

While Kondo didn't publicly respond to Roman's remarks, Teigen spoke out on Twitter, writing that she was "so bummed out by the words of a fellow food-lover."

The mother-of-two defended her Cravings website, which shares the same name as her cookbooks, saying she wanted to make something independent of her husband, John Legend, while creating something that "calms" her.

Got a story or a tip for us? Email TooFab editors at tips@toofab.com.