Emily in Paris Season 5 Episode 1 recap: A fresh start in Rome brings new romance and new challenges

Emily in Paris Season 5 Episode 1 is titled La Dolce Emily. It dropped on Netflix on December 18, 2025. All 10 Episodes were released on the same date.

Emily starts her new journey in Rome and is the boss at the new Agence Grateau office. She has a new thing going on with Marcello, who just so happens to be an Italian fashion heir. He tries to lure her into a slow, Roman morning, but we know Emily. She is up at the crack of dawn, rocking a fresh bob, and hustling to work on a bus like a true local.

She is juggling many things as usual: new job, new city, Marcello, and still tangled up in Paris drama. The show leans into a la dolce vita theme, but you can see the storm brewing. Emily in Paris Season 5 Episode 1 teases a serious tension coming her way, especially with her old Paris crew.

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Emily in Paris Season 5 Episode 1 recap: La Dolce Emily

In Emily in Paris Season 5 Episode 1, Emily Cooper is not even in Paris. She is in Rome. She wakes up right next to Marcello, a handsome guy who is apparently heir to some fancy Muratori fashion empire. Marcello tries to persuade her to remain in bed for some more time, but Emily is thinking only about her first day at Agence Grateau’s Italian office.

So, she is off to work on a local bus. She calls Mindy, who has just flown in from Shanghai, and is going back to Paris. Emily is in a new city, pretending to be all independent, but she is still the same old Emily in just a new setting.

At the office, Sylvie is already in a deep discussion with Giancarlo about the future of Grateau Agency in Italy. While Sylvie is trying to get back to Paris, Giancarlo recommends that she stay a little longer to help with the Rome office’s growth. Sylvie is excited and soon convinced. She dials Luc and Julien, inviting them to come with her to Italy.

That’s when Emily comes into the office, only to find out that Sylvie, Luc, and Julien are all going to work there. This is in direct opposition to Sylvie’s earlier assurance that Emily would be the sole one in charge of the Italy office. She is obviously not having it and corners Sylvie, looking for answers. But Sylvie shrugs it off, calling it “business.”

Meanwhile, Paris has turned into a ghost town. Antoine and Alfie show up at the abandoned office, expecting a powwow with Sylvie, but jokes on them, she is in Italy. Once Antoine hears about it, he loses it. He was already fuming after his baby perfume tanked, so now he is blaming Sylvie and the crew for the flop.

Emily in Paris Season 5 Episode 1 shows that Sylvie is living her best double life in Rome: juggling her gig and her romance with Giancarlo. She is already scheming ways to keep the Rome office open, and she knows she needs to land some fresh Italian clients before anyone back home starts asking questions. Here, Luc proves useful since he is dating Bianca Bavazza from a fancy coffee family.

Julien, on the other hand, is also enjoying a lively social life and even flirting with a Dolce & Gabbana contact, who spoils him with presents. Emily in Paris Season 5 Episode 1 makes it clear very early that people at Agence Grateau are top-notch when it comes to blurring professional and personal boundaries. If anything, they are all doubling down on everything in Rome.

Emily spends half the episode chasing after a partnership with Muratori, this super-secret, ultra-fancy brand that Marcello’s family owns. Marcello even drags Emily to meet his mother, Antonia, plus his sisters, Livia and Francesca. They both look like they would rather eat glass than share a meal with Emily. Before dinner, they go truffle hunting. Emily, of course, shows up in shoes that scream Paris, not Italian woods. She is slipping around, making a mess, but she is determined not to look like a total idiot.

At the Muratori mansion, Livia and Francesca treat Emily like she is a gold digger. They keep shooting daggers her way, grilling her about her motives, all but saying that she is there for their brother’s money. Marcello tries to play the knight in shining armor, but the awkwardness is building in Emily in Paris Season 5 Episode 1.

Later, Emily tries to sneak some business talk into the kitchen small talk with Antonia. She dodges her at first, then finally says that she doesn’t actually care about expanding Muratori at all. She has decided to partner with Agence Grateau solely until JVMA and Nico get bored, which will then be her cue to take the brand back to its old, small-scale, traditional roots. This is a disappointing piece of information for Emily, but it is also the one that strengthens her determination even more.

Elsewhere in Emily in Paris Season 5 Episode 1, Gabriel shows up in Rome. He sees Emily laughing with Marcello right outside the office. He doesn’t disrupt things, but it is evident that when Gabriel sees Emily with another man, he realizes what he has lost.

A bit later, Sylvie drags Gabriel out for lunch. She gets real with him, saying that the timing has always been bad between him and Emily. Sometimes you just need to let go, even if it stings. Is Gabriel actually going to listen? Who knows.

That night, an old acquaintance of Sylvie pops up in Rome: Princess Gianna, a British royal with sharp instincts and a difficult financial situation. Over drinks, Gianna tells Sylvie that the business in Rome will be hard, especially since Antonia will be difficult to win over. She suggests a welcome party at her palazzo to introduce Agence Grateau to the right people, but says that she will expect something in return.

The next day, Sylvie loops Emily in about the party and gives her a pep talk about chasing down Muratori. Meanwhile, Antoine ships over a bunch of his baby perfume that nobody wants back in France and jokingly implies that they try selling it in Italy. Emily has always positive attitude and sees the situation as an opportunity.

Back in Paris, Alfie drops the bomb on Gabriel: Antoine is slashing the restaurant budget even though the restaurant was recently awarded a Michelin star. Gabriel confesses that he wants to revamp the menu to draw in a fresh customer base. Shortly, Mindy appears, and she and Alfie start to connect over their troubled love lives, the bond being noticed by Genevieve.

Their flirting is not in-your-face, but everyone with a pulse picks up on it. You just know this is gonna stir up some drama down the line.

In Rome, it’s all glitz at Princess Gianna’s welcome bash in Emily in Paris Season 5 Episode 1. But underneath the sparkle, Gianna is spilling to Sylvie that she is broke and that she has to rent out rooms to make ends meet. She also suggests that Sylvie be connected to luxury brands in exchange for a share of future partnerships. A princess has to eat!

At the same time, Emily does not miss her chance. She presents to Antonia the idea of having a perfume partnership using Antoine’s baby perfume as the signature scent of Muratori. Notably, Antonia shows interest and invites Emily for further talks regarding the concept. Luc brings Bianca to Sylvie, and Sylvie proposes an alcohol line based on coffee, immediately impressing Bianca. The evening turns out to be a major shift for the office in Rome.

And then Antoine shows up, working his usual magic, flirting with Antonia, dragging her onto the dance floor so she can literally smell the fragrance in motion. Against all odds, Antonia is in. Emily watches proudly as her risky idea pays off.

Emily in Paris Season 5 Episode 1 wraps up riding high. Emily is not the boss of the Rome crew yet, but she is already making waves in the city. Rome is definitely not Paris, but for Emily Cooper, it already feels like the start of something big.

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Also Read: Emily in Paris Season 5 Episode 1: Release date news, time, streaming details, cast, and more