A popular vegan restaurant in California shuts down amid backlash after making a bold choice. After many years of only offering vegan options, this vegan restaurant decided to put meat back on the menu and their customers were not having it.
Vegan Restaurant Decides To Put Meat On The Menu
Sage Regenerative Kitchen and Brewery was a popular vegan restaurant chain in California. While they admit they have been facing financial struggles for some time, the ultimate reason for their demise is when they decided to put meat and animal items on their menu.
Although it was a beloved restaurant, love alone won't pay your bills. Especially when it comes to Californias high taxes. The restaurant was having a difficult time paying its rent, so much so that Mollie Engelhart and her husband, owners of the restaurant, sold their home in order to put money back into the company."
When nothing else was working, the co-owners hoped that a new tactic would bring in more customers and increase their cash flow. In May of 2024, the restaurant added meat, cheese, and eggs to its vegan menu. While animal products were being added, Engelhart hoped to lessen the burden by explaining that it was all grown with regenerative farming methods. Therefore, it was still having less of an environmental impact than traditional farming.
Vegan Restaurant Shuts Down After Adding Animal Products
Screenshot from Instagram
While Engelhart was hoping to blend two of her passions, the public did not agree. She told the Post, "I thought maybe we could merge these two things, my restaurant and my passion for regenerative agriculture, and come to some new pathway." However, this hope of hers quickly died as her choice to add animal products sparked rage with her current client base.
They flooded her restaurant with one star reviews and tore her apart on social media. Finally, when she shared the post about the restaurant shutting down, the majority of people were happy. Leaving hateful comments about their glee, watching as the vegan restaurant shuts down. Here are some of the comments left under that post.
"CALLED IT ?? Sooooo long"
"You made your bed, goodbyeeee ?."
"Best present for the holidays, chef mollie crying about not being able to serve dead animals to people anymore. Boo hoo."
"My favorite memory is when compassion and ethics were on the menu. It's very apparent now that you were simply scrambling to figure out a way to make more money this past year, and lost your way, sold out the animals, and put exploitation first. I'm not surprised you're closing."
"Don't let the door of hypocrisy and betrayal hit you on the way out! ? ? ? ? ?"
