Restaurant power couple Lisa Vanderpump and Ken Todd are closing one of their famed establishments. Pump restaurant was featured on Lisa’s reality show Vanderpump Rules and will be closing its doors after a decade of serving customers in West Hollywood, California.
The Pump Family released an official statement regarding the closure late last week. An exponential increase in rent was supposedly the catalyst for Lisa and Ken’s decision to wave goodbye. Yet the landlord has come forward with a statement of his own. And it’s contradicting what Lisa’s reps have said.
Landlord claims there was no rent increase
The Pump Family tweeted out an official statement that read, “It’s with heavy hearts that we announce that the lease at Pump restaurant is expiring, and we will be closing its doors on July 5th, after 10 years of beautiful evenings under our olive trees.”
Lisa decided to stay open an extra month so her annual Pride extravaganza could be held one last time at Pump.
“While we have loved our time operating Pump, to take on another 10-year lease with a huge increase in rent by the landlords, is not something we are ready to commit to,” the statement concluded. “After successfully running 37+ establishments for many years, this type of rent is untenable.”
Lisa’s landlord responded with a statement to Deadline. The landlord suggested the restaurant struggled since the pandemic. Claims that rent increased were also denied.
“Lisa’s comments regarding the rent for Pump are not accurate. We did not raise the rent and in fact have been nothing but supportive as they tried to catch up on lease obligations including forgiving some rent during Covid,” the statement read.
But Ken and Lisa are still winning in the restaurant game. TomTom and Sur are still thriving. The couple are opening two new restaurants in Las Vegas, Nevada.
TELL US – WHAT IS YOUR REACTION TO THE LANDLORD’S STATEMENT? DO YOU BELIEVE LISA OR THE LANDLORD? WHAT DO YOU THINK REALLY HAPPENED?
This story originally appeared on Realitytea
