Reality TV star Lisa Vanderpump’s West Hollywood restaurant on Santa Monica Boulevard, which opened in 2014, could very well close soon unless the restaurant manages to work out a new long-term lease. Vanderpump, who does not own the Pump building, has been so far unable to ink a new deal with the landlords, and just this week a new real estate listing showed the Pump space as up for grabs.
That’s not all. Earlier this month, Pump had its liquor license revoked by the state’s Alcoholic Beverage Control board, though it has since been reinstated. Soon after, Lisa Vanderpump spoke to Entertainment Tonight about the myriad troubles at the restaurant, including the possibility that the business may be sold, or that the lease may simply not be renewed.
In that ET report, an unnamed source says the restaurant has struggled since the start of the pandemic, and may not be doing well financially. Pump has been a fixture on reality television for the past decade, serving as a backdrop to all of the scandal, intrigue, and popcorn drama from within the Vanderpump Rules empire. Most recently, that drama has moved over to Franklin Village’s Schwartz & Sandy’s, where a cheating scandal has engulfed one owner of the Vanderpump-adjacent restaurant (and of course it’s all playing out on television). Co-owner Tom Sandoval says that restaurant is now struggling financially as well.
Regardless of the money and the television fame, Pump needs a new lease in order to continue operating in West Hollywood. Vanderpump told ET that her team has “a great relationship with the landlord, and are currently discussing re-signing our lease,” though real estate broker Leslie Haro says that the landlord is still actively looking “for a long-term tenant,” per ET. Haro’s CityStreet Commercial brokerage just yesterday sent around a listing announcing the availability of the “iconic” restaurant space in West Hollywood. The listing does not specify financial terms, but states that a ten-year lease is on offer and that the address should be available within the next 90 days. What that ultimately means for Pump remains to be seen.
This isn’t the first time the mercurial television star has found herself struggling in the hospitality business. Vanderpump’s upscale Villa Blanca closed in 2020 after failing to find a suitable buyer for years. Vanderpump was also sued for $100,000 in 2021 by West Central Produce for non-payment of delivered goods to restaurants Pump and Villa Blanca.
