The COVID-19 pandemic forced many businesses to shut down due to safety regulations, and restaurants were among the most affected. This spelled trouble for ex-Real Housewives of Beverly Hills star, Vanderpump Rules executive producer and restaurant mogul Lisa Vanderpump. Her restaurants were shut down during quarantine but, now, it's been reported that two of Vanderpump's restaurants are facing a lawsuit.
Lisa Vanderpump and husband Ken Todd's restaurants PUMP and Villa Blanca are being sued in a lawsuit by their produce distributor West Central Produce, according to TMZ. Per the lawsuit obtained by the trade, the restaurants last made payments to West Central Produce in March 2020 but they have allegedly not received any payment since. The lawsuit asserts that PUMP's last payment was $9,144.70, while Villa Blanca's was $8,890.10. The company claims the restaurants owe them around the figure of $100,000, and it's suing for that very amount as well as some interest.
She left Real Housewives of Beverly Hills after nine seasons, but Lisa Vanderpump still had four restaurants in Los Angeles and West Hollywood – PUMP, Villa Blanca, SUR and TomTom. All of which were shut down back in March because of the quarantine rules. PUMP and Villa Blanca both released joint statements at the time on Instagram that read:
It saddens us to have to do this, but with the advisement of the government and local authorities, we have closed our restaurants until further notice. These are scary times right now, but nothing is more important than the health and safety of our employees and guests.
PUMP restaurant announced in October that it would be reopening, with social distance dining, after seven months of being shut down. However, Lisa Vanderpump made a statement back in July to the Daily Mail that Villa Blanca was closing for good, saying:
If the landlord had been willing to renegotiate and the lease wasn’t ending, we would have reopened, but unfortunately with Coronavirus, the situation was beyond our control. While saying goodbye to the location where we have actively served the Beverly Hills community for 12 years and employed hundreds of Angelenos, is a sad time for us, we are excited to perhaps bring Villa Blanca back in the future at a different location – as its staff and customers have always been a family.
The lawsuit against Lisa Vanderpump's restaurants comes on the heels of Vanderpump herself facing a lawsuit. In December, Page Six reported that Vanderpump was facing a class action lawsuit that accused her of altering timesheet records, not paying wages and not giving proper breaks for employees. Vanderpump has yet to address the allegations in either lawsuit publicly.
Though these allegations have sprung up at a very tumultuous time, Lisa Vanderpump is still going full force. Aside from her restaurants, she has two new reality shows – Vanderpump Dogs and Overserved with Lisa Vanderpump – and a potential book coming out.
