Bakery owner who went viral with response to critical influencer speaks out on why she defended her business
An Arizona bakery owner went viral after calling out incorrect claims an influencer made about her pastries in October after she turned down a collaboration.
Jenna Leurquin, the owner of Jenna Leurquin Patisserie, known as JL Patisserie, spoke with Fox News Digital about why she made the viral video and the importance of transparency among the new trend of influencers reviewing small businesses, even offering financial incentives for marketing.
JL Patisserie was opened by Leurquin, an immigrant from Belgium, in 2018, and now has three locations, two in Phoenix and one in Scottsdale.
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Aurora Griffo, who has reviewed restaurants on her TikTok account Glamorama, (now @glamoramaaaaa); stirred some controversy that many have called "pastry gate" after her review of JL Patisserie.
"I do not mind spending $10 on a pastry if they are really good, but you cannot use fake-a-- ingredients," she said in the now-deleted review.
Specifically criticizing the pistachio croissant, Griffo said, "That pistachio color is about as natural as my boobs, a-- and waistline."
She added, "With all of that being said, I think if you stay away from the expensive ingredients, like deez nuts, you can definitely enjoy delicious, rich pastry here." Griffo's review did not initially go viral, but it caught the eye of the bakery owner.
Leurquin expressed respect for different opinions. She felt the need to address the claims to defend her bakery, in a TikTok that now has over 73 million views.
Leurquin explained to Fox News Digital why she responded.
"So it felt that this video misrepresented our business, our culture and really what we are passionate about and what we really work hard to do. We really pride ourselves in the methods and like the artisanal methods of making everything that we make, all of our croissants, all our breads, our sourdough."
Leurquin hit back on the false ingredients claim in the video, sharing that most of the ingredients are imported from Europe.
"It felt the review specifically tried to hurt us because she didn't get what she wanted, she said. "And so she was stating facts that were not true about us. And so I just wanted to speak out and demonstrate really who we are and what we do."
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This comes as more stories continue to demonstrate conflicts that arise from influencers reviewing restaurants.
"Restaurant owner goes viral after calling out influencer asking for $1,800 to eat there," one story published on Yahoo Creators said.
"These L.A. Restaurants Are Speaking Out After The Influencers They Paid Ghosted Them," reads another by L.A. Taco.
"Social media influencer arrested for skipping out on nearly $400 restaurant bill after live streaming meal," another story from The Independent reports.
Although Leurquin acknowledged that influencers can be powerful, she had to turn down the offer to collaborate due to what her budget allowed at the time.
"She had originally DMed us and asked to work in a collaborative way for her to come in our restaurant or bakery and try some of the products. And I told her immediately when she reached out, ‘Hey, unfortunately, right now I have zero budget for social media or influencer marketing.’"
After the conflict took the internet by storm, Griffo changed her username and deleted her review videos.
Griffo posted a response amid "Pastry Gate," disputing Leurquin's claims that she requested payment for a review.
Although screenshots Griffo shared on TikTok appear to show she did not request monetary compensation, they also indicate she asked for her meal and gratuity to be comped and said she would not publish a review if her experience was poor.
Leurquin's statements matched up with the screenshots regarding the request for comped food.
Griffo also claimed in her response that the bakery "punched down" because they have a larger social media presence than she did.
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Before agreeing to anything, Griffo showed up to her restaurant anyway to film a review.
"We realized who she was early on in the interaction," Leurquin said. "And then she asked to turn the music down because one of my team members is French and he speaks with a bit of a French accent. And she said she couldn't understand him well. So we turned down the music. And then she complained about a few things. So we offered her drinks on the house. We were trying to be nice and accommodating. Obviously, we turned the music down and all of that stuff. So then she went to sit outside and she started recording."
According to Griffo, she was provided a shot of espresso.
After Griffo accused the bakery of using fake ingredients, Leurquin took to TikTok to set the record straight. Including showing the pistachio paste made out of pure pistachios and flour imported from Europe.
As a result of the viral incident, according to Leurquin, they saw an increase in customers. The bakery owner said the support came after a "rough" 2025 summer.
"I think the community really came and supported us," she said. "It also helped us tremendously.
Leurquin said she believes this conflict may have impacted how people use influencers and the desire for authenticity.
"I do think prior to this really big moment, some people started realizing that influencers were a little bit biased," she said. "And so I think this was an opportunity for them to really see what's going on behind closed doors and how those influencers actually do engage with the restaurants."
The bakery owner acknowledged that influencers make money from content and collaborations, but shared that this expense can be difficult for small businesses trying to make ends meet.
As for Leurquin, she uses TikTok to demonstrate the behind-the-scenes of what goes into running a bakery, from interacting with customers and days spent making pastries.
"I think my approach in my social media is to showcase people what it takes to do what we do and the labor that's behind it for people to really truly appreciate it," she said.
The TikTok page has over 690K followers and nearly 24 million likes across all videos.
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Griffo shared an apology on social media after posting the response video, that said in part,
"First and foremost. I want to address the 'fake a-- ingredients' comment. When I tasted the pistachio pastry, I noticed a strong pistachio flavor that reminded me of extract or flavoring so I assumed that's what was used to enhance the taste. Maybe it was added, maybe it wasn't. But I want to be clear they do use real ingredients as well, and I should have been more thoughtful with my wording."
"My review was not revenge for being turned down for a collaboration I had already planned to visit and review the bakery regardless, paid or not," Griffo wrote. "But I understand with how things unfolded, it might have looked like I did it out of spite. That’s not who l am, and that was never my intention."
Griffo added, "When the collaboration didn't work out, I completely respected that and went in as a regular paying customer. My goal was still to give an honest review, but I see how that message, followed by a negative video, made it seem like I only wanted free food or felt entitled and that's not true. That was never my mindset, and I truly regret that it came across that way."
She apologized directly to the bakery as well:
"To the bakery, I’m sincerely sorry for any harm my words may have caused. I respect the time, effort, and heart that goes into running a small business, and I genuinely wish you nothing but success moving forward," she wrote. "At the end of the day, we’re all human. Sometimes we mess up publicly and all we can do is take accountability, learn, and grow from it."