Slutty Vegan's Pinky Cole sued over rent at Edgewood Avenue stores

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Pinky Cole at one of her many Slutty Vegan locations in Atlanta, Georgia on April 28, 2022. (Photo by Lexi Scott for The Washington Post via Getty Images)

ATLANTA - Popular Atlanta restauranteur Pinky Cole is facing a new lawsuit accusing her of failing to pay rent for two properties on Edgewood Avenue.

The complaint, filed last week in Fulton County state court, accuses the Slutty Vegan and her company of owing more than $87,000 in rent, late fees, and interest.

What they're saying:

Attorneys for Asana Partners LLC say the Delaware-based company owns multiple properties on Atlanta's popular Edgewood Avenue, including the locations of Cole's Slutty Vegan and The Morning After restaurants.

The lawsuit alleges Cole's company, Slutty Vegan, Inc., has not paid rent on both properties of nearly $40,000. That number is then compounded by a late fee of 5% and an interest rate on past due amounts of 7%.

"As a result of Tenant’s breach of the Leases for failure to pay rent and other monetary charges due, Landlord has suffered damages in an amount to be proven at trial, but in no event less than the total sum $87,312.65, exclusive of late fees and interest, plus additional rent and other charges that accrue under the Leases at the rate of $13,665.34 per month, subject to regularly scheduled adjustments reflected in the Leases," the lawsuit reads.

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Dig deeper:

Slutty Vegan, which rose to national prominence after launching as a food truck in 2019, has scaled back significantly in recent months. Once operating 14 locations across four states, the brand now runs five restaurants, according to its website. Several locations of Bar Vegan — another venture co-founded by Cole — also closed earlier this year. 

During an interview with People magazine earlier this year, Cole revealed that Slutty Vegan underwent restructuring following significant financial setbacks, including a $10 million corporate overhead. She temporarily handed over ownership to an assignee in February, but on March 28, she bought the business back for an undisclosed amount.

In June, a plan for a Slutty Vegan location at Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport was scrapped. Instead, two new restaurants — Buffalo Wild Wings and a new Asian-Southern fusion concept called Wu Tang Asian Kitchen — will open in the Concourse B space originally slated for the vegan chain.

Cole has recently been seen filming with the "Real Housewives of Atlanta."