Page 47 of The Love Thief
CHAPTER THIRTY - FOUR The Queen of Vegan Goes Down
I was snuggled under the covers, blissed out from my Ayurvedic massage, and just about to turn off the lamp when my phone pinged with a message from Mom.
“Holly, you won’t believe what he’s done now,” it said. Below it was a link to an article entitled, “The Queen of Vegan Loves Bacon . ” Feeling a jolt of adrenaline, I clicked on it and began reading.
“Rachel Rosenberg, owner/chef of North Park’s wildly popular Queen of Vegan Café, has long touted the health benefits of a vegan lifestyle, but her fans and patrons are abandoning her in droves, driven by a recent viral video that features the animal rights advocate eating bacon.”
In the video, Rosenberg is seen explaining that while she mostly eats vegan, bacon has always been her favorite food. She then goes on to list a dozen of her most popular recipes, from pizza to cupcakes, which feature bacon as a key ingredient.
“In response, the James Beard award winner and cookbook author claims the video is a deepfake, maliciously spread by her former business partner and former boyfriend, Barry Tavers, whom she is suing for breach of contract after he failed to fulfill his commitment to funding a restaurant the two were planning.
“In a recent podcast, Tavers made a further claim that Rosenberg deceives her patrons by using lard in her refried beans and that the dishes presented as ‘nut-free’ on her menu nearly harmed one of his daughters.
“‘After eating Rosenberg’s Thai Chicken Bowl with Faux Peanut Sauce, my daughter, who has a severe nut allergy, began swelling up and choking. Thank God she had her emergency epinephrine injection in her purse, or she might have died,’ he told the audience.
“Rosenberg has released the following statement on all of her social media channels: ‘This video is a deepfake. It’s appalling that technology exists in which my image and voice have been manipulated to spread these lies. As someone who was raised in a kosher home and who has never eaten or even tasted bacon, it’s horrifying to have my reputation slandered in this way.
These allegations are wholly untrue and deeply painful.
“‘My commitment has always been and remains to serve guests the highest quality organic, vegan food. And for the record, I have a nut allergy myself, which is one of the reasons I became a vegan chef dedicated to creating delicious food. My food is prepared with the highest levels of safety, integrity, and love.’”
“An employee of Queen of Vegan, who has asked to not be identified, reports that business has declined by 70 percent since the video surfaced and that it’s believed that PETA (People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals) has asked Rosenberg to resign from its board of directors.”
My eyes lingered on a very pretty headshot of Rachel, broadly smiling and posing in her kitchen and wearing a large crystal crown and an apron sporting her Queen of Vegan logo.
After reading the article for a second time, I had to remind myself to breathe.
Barry knew full well that Rachel was someone I greatly admired in the small circle of hot young San Diego chefs.
He also knew that, like Rachel, I aspired to open my own restaurant someday.
I clearly remember introducing the two of them when I took him there for lunch soon after we got engaged.
Even though my heart broke for Rachel, for having to deal with a possible career-ending nightmare that Barry had dumped on her, I was also shocked that in the few months we had been apart, he had managed to connect with her as both a lover and a business partner.
I wondered, If he can take down the Queen of Vegan, how much damage is he capable of inflicting on me?
My phone pinged again. “Well, what do you think?” Mom asked. “Mostly, I feel so sad for Rachel,” I texted back. “She doesn’t deserve this. How can one person be so totally evil? And I also feel a little guilty. I introduced them.”
“Oh, Holly, you know this is totally not on you. Barry Tavers is a virus. A black mold. Hurting everything and everyone in his path. Let’s be grateful he will soon be in the rearview mirror.
When you get back, we can go for lunch and give Rachel some support.
In the meantime, I’ll write a super positive Yelp review. ”
“Thanks, Mom. I love you. Going to sleep now.” But sleep was not to come. It had been a while since I had felt anything close to sadness.
My santosha experience and the excitement of co-creating Moondoggie’s had me in a near-constant state of fulfillment and satisfaction with a good dose of optimism.
While my broken heart no longer felt that broken or consciously yearned for Barry, I was filled with conflicting emotions and questions:
Just how long has Barry been flirting with Rachel? Was he secretly seeing her when we were together?
What retaliation was he planning for me once I got home to San Diego?
Will it ever be safe for me to return to the food business? Can I ever trust a man again?