It’s bad enough that the carnist community paints vegans as holier-than-thou braggarts who cant go out for a meal without preaching the sanctity of veganism to everyone we meet. Now we have Mr. Kenney who proves their point in a grand way: it’s not about living an ethical life that doesn’t involve murdering animals for food, it’s all about money, sex, and power - vegans are hypocrites!
Matthew Kenney isn’t a bad vegan (I don’t know, maybe he sneaks around eating cheeseburgers when no one is looking); Matthew Kenney is a bad person.
When I first started eating vegan, I had a trip to LA planned and wanted to find a vegan restaurant. I had just started using your cookbooks and the food is so good, I googled your name and vegan restaurants, hoping you had one. You didn't, of course (though maybe that could be your next venture!), but I found something where you guys recommended restaurants in the area. One of them was Stuff I Eat, and it was amazing! I had no idea eating out as a vegan could be so good! Now I live in Minneapolis (I miss California so much, but that's another story) and there are great vegan options here. I don't know if we have any Matthew Kenney restaurants, but if we do, I'll be sure to steer clear of them!
Thank you for letting us know. I live in NOLA. When the John Besh scandal hit, everyone I know stopped eating at his restaurants, cold stop. He resigned from operations but was still raking in the profits and we would not support restaurants that were lining his pockets. Unfortunately, tourists had no idea and kept flocking to his restaurants. We cannot be ethical in an information vacuum so thank you.
If you are ever in NOLA, definitely go to Breads on Oak (full disclosure: I have known the owners, Sean and Chamain since they opened the bakery and, during Carnival season, I help out with the vegan king cake shipping). Great food (the baked goods are fabulous and the sandwiches are absolutely amazing), super nice owners, and they quietly hire some people who are just reentering society after prison or rehab (I only know this because several of those employees have shared their histories with me while I am slapping labels on shipping boxes). Exactly the kind of ethical vegan business that it is a pleasure to support.
It’s amazing what a guy like Matthew Kenney gets away with. I don’t think he has any restaurants here in Canada but as Leslie mentions above, I’ll be sure to steer clear of them. I don’t mind eating out here and there but, there are no better eats, than the eats you cook at home because you know what’s in it and if you don’t like it, don’t cook it again.
Mr. Kenney has a bad reputation where ever he goes, it seems like. I'm just glad he decided to move on from Maine. He clearly has talent in the kitchen but whether through mismanagement or by design, he seems to be a serial entrepreneur with little regard for his staff or clientele.
We have Rich Landau here.. Vedge owner. Complete tool and awful to work with/for. The food is great but its obvious the staff are miserable. I know a few people that worked for him and he is a total ass. I wont eat there 😳
I pretty much never go out to eat. Delicious vegan food at home is so cheap it’s crazy. And delicious and easy. A rice cooker, an instant pot for beans… maybe an air fryer or toaster oven. Beans, grains, nuts, seeds, herbs, spices, fruits, vegetables… oh and a soymilk maker. A tofu making kit if you want. Nutritional yeast. Right? Ok, liquid smoke and maybe some other little things. Cheap. Easy. Delicious. I just had one stent surgery and fear another. I am powering nutritional yeast in every deal meals because it has beta glucans, which assist in the creation of new blood vessels to assist the arteries. Hey. Vegan food may just save my life!
This is utterly fascinating. I had no idea about all of this, yet I am not surprised. So very many openings + most famous/male chefs = my eyebrows are up.
I have eaten at one if his NYC spots and did not get the appeal (see also - I am cheap and rarely impressed).
I went to culinary school in nyc and saved all my dollars to eat at pure food and wine! My mind was blown after watching bad vegan. A few years ago I received an email advertising said new Kenny school and I wondered “didn’t he have another school and another school ?” Great piece!
Douche bag is douche bag. Whether they eat beef or tempeh for dinner. I was scanning the article to see if somehow my beloved but recently defunct Flore Vegan on Sunset was a casualty of this dude, but thankfully not.
It's a shame that anyone thinks the LA times and Netflix are necessarily legitimate sources of information. I'll reserve judgment about either "bad" vegan until I get their side of the story and fully understand the complexity of companies that have other parties both funding and managing them.
It’s bad enough that the carnist community paints vegans as holier-than-thou braggarts who cant go out for a meal without preaching the sanctity of veganism to everyone we meet. Now we have Mr. Kenney who proves their point in a grand way: it’s not about living an ethical life that doesn’t involve murdering animals for food, it’s all about money, sex, and power - vegans are hypocrites!
Matthew Kenney isn’t a bad vegan (I don’t know, maybe he sneaks around eating cheeseburgers when no one is looking); Matthew Kenney is a bad person.
When I first started eating vegan, I had a trip to LA planned and wanted to find a vegan restaurant. I had just started using your cookbooks and the food is so good, I googled your name and vegan restaurants, hoping you had one. You didn't, of course (though maybe that could be your next venture!), but I found something where you guys recommended restaurants in the area. One of them was Stuff I Eat, and it was amazing! I had no idea eating out as a vegan could be so good! Now I live in Minneapolis (I miss California so much, but that's another story) and there are great vegan options here. I don't know if we have any Matthew Kenney restaurants, but if we do, I'll be sure to steer clear of them!
Thank you for letting us know. I live in NOLA. When the John Besh scandal hit, everyone I know stopped eating at his restaurants, cold stop. He resigned from operations but was still raking in the profits and we would not support restaurants that were lining his pockets. Unfortunately, tourists had no idea and kept flocking to his restaurants. We cannot be ethical in an information vacuum so thank you.
If you are ever in NOLA, definitely go to Breads on Oak (full disclosure: I have known the owners, Sean and Chamain since they opened the bakery and, during Carnival season, I help out with the vegan king cake shipping). Great food (the baked goods are fabulous and the sandwiches are absolutely amazing), super nice owners, and they quietly hire some people who are just reentering society after prison or rehab (I only know this because several of those employees have shared their histories with me while I am slapping labels on shipping boxes). Exactly the kind of ethical vegan business that it is a pleasure to support.
It’s amazing what a guy like Matthew Kenney gets away with. I don’t think he has any restaurants here in Canada but as Leslie mentions above, I’ll be sure to steer clear of them. I don’t mind eating out here and there but, there are no better eats, than the eats you cook at home because you know what’s in it and if you don’t like it, don’t cook it again.
I’m a lifelong Michigander who cooks at home but I’m guessing we have similar nightmares here too. Thanks for an eye opener on this guy!
Mr. Kenney has a bad reputation where ever he goes, it seems like. I'm just glad he decided to move on from Maine. He clearly has talent in the kitchen but whether through mismanagement or by design, he seems to be a serial entrepreneur with little regard for his staff or clientele.
So he’s the vegan Donald Trump
We have Rich Landau here.. Vedge owner. Complete tool and awful to work with/for. The food is great but its obvious the staff are miserable. I know a few people that worked for him and he is a total ass. I wont eat there 😳
I pretty much never go out to eat. Delicious vegan food at home is so cheap it’s crazy. And delicious and easy. A rice cooker, an instant pot for beans… maybe an air fryer or toaster oven. Beans, grains, nuts, seeds, herbs, spices, fruits, vegetables… oh and a soymilk maker. A tofu making kit if you want. Nutritional yeast. Right? Ok, liquid smoke and maybe some other little things. Cheap. Easy. Delicious. I just had one stent surgery and fear another. I am powering nutritional yeast in every deal meals because it has beta glucans, which assist in the creation of new blood vessels to assist the arteries. Hey. Vegan food may just save my life!
This is utterly fascinating. I had no idea about all of this, yet I am not surprised. So very many openings + most famous/male chefs = my eyebrows are up.
I have eaten at one if his NYC spots and did not get the appeal (see also - I am cheap and rarely impressed).
I went to culinary school in nyc and saved all my dollars to eat at pure food and wine! My mind was blown after watching bad vegan. A few years ago I received an email advertising said new Kenny school and I wondered “didn’t he have another school and another school ?” Great piece!
I did NOT need you reminding me of how much I miss Pure Luck.
Bless you for writing this. Thank you.
Thank you, Michelle, excellent report.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Matthew_Kenney
Douche bag is douche bag. Whether they eat beef or tempeh for dinner. I was scanning the article to see if somehow my beloved but recently defunct Flore Vegan on Sunset was a casualty of this dude, but thankfully not.
It's a shame that anyone thinks the LA times and Netflix are necessarily legitimate sources of information. I'll reserve judgment about either "bad" vegan until I get their side of the story and fully understand the complexity of companies that have other parties both funding and managing them.