A well-known Portland chef got an angry response after she chose to commemorate the 50th anniversary of the assassination of the Rev. Martin Luther King, Jr. by sharing a picture of her restaurant's fried chicken on social media Wednesday.

She apologized for the post Thursday morning.

"Dr. Martin Luther King, Junior died April 4, 1968," Jenn Louis wrote on in an Instagram post, later tweeted by several people. "One of his favorite foods was fried chicken, We know he would have loved Israeli fried chicken, if he had the chance to try it."

Shades of Justin Bieber at the Anne Frank House pic.twitter.com/kqWESCUHI7 — Michael Russell (@tdmrussell) April 5, 2018

Louis is the owner and chef of Ray, an Israeli restaurant on North Williams, in a historically black neighborhood. According to the restaurant's website, it "celebrates Israel's diverse cultures and culinary traditions with a modern, seasonal menu imbued with a straightforward, full-flavored style."

Louis was named Food & Wine Magazine's best new chef in 2012 and appeared on Top Chef Masters in 2013.

She was arrested on a domestic violence charge at her former restaurant Lincoln in 2016, after she was accused of punching her husband while the two were in the middle of getting a divorce. That case was later dropped.

The reaction to her post Wednesday was swift. The Portland Mercury's food critic Andrea Damewood shared a screenshot and wrote, "Holy. What?!? MLK assassination = fried chicken = try my fried chicken?!?"

Holy. What?!? MLK assassination = fried chicken = try my fried chicken?!? pic.twitter.com/3bzP6tB6yk — Andrea Damew❄️❄️d (@adamewood) April 5, 2018

When people started commenting on the different ways this post could be viewed as inappropriate, more screenshots posted by Damewood show Louis started responding.

In one response to a comment calling the post "racist and not cool!" Louis wrote, "I am not racist I'm a fan of all races and cultures. I am well-traveled and always seek out to learn more about lifestyles I don't know about."

Update from the comments land. HOW HARD IS IT TO SAY YOURE SORRY AND TAKE IT DOWN pic.twitter.com/tlnoOSK3yJ — Andrea Damew❄️❄️d (@adamewood) April 5, 2018

Ultimately, the post was removed from Instagram and tweets about the post were removed from Twitter.

Louis posted an apology to her Facebook page on Thursday, writing, "After reflecting on this over the last 24 hours, I realize I unintentionally and very sadly made an error in judgement."

"I sought a way to mark out this painful anniversary and to pay tribute to MLK's remarkable fight for equality," she continued. "I connect through food, and learning that this was one of

his favorites made me excited to share it."

After reflecting on this over the last 24 hours, I realize I unintentionally and very sadly made an error in judgement. ... Posted by Jenn Louis on Thursday, April 5, 2018

Louis and Ray did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

-- Lizzy Acker

503-221-8052

lacker@oregonian.com, @lizzzyacker