Lisa Vanderpump and her husband, Ken Todd, have been named in a lawsuit filed by two would-be bar owners who say the “Real Housewives Of Beverly Hills” stars jumped in and took the venue they were going to use to open a gay bar.
Ryan Allen Carrillo and Andrew Gruver say that they partnered with producer Elie Samaha to open a new club called Bar Varsity on Santa Monica Blvd. The location is the former site of Java Detour, which was owned by Samaha and his brother and was torn down. The suit claims that Samaha agreed to put up $500,000 to invest in the new club, but the money never changed hands and the lack of funding caused other investors to back out.
Carrillo and Gruver also state in the suit that Samaha and co-defendants Freddy Braidy and Edward Frumkes leased the property to the Vanderpumps so that they could open P.U.M.P. Lounge but never conferred with them about it, causing a breach of contract. The allegations against the couple include breach of fiduciary duty, fraud, breach of contract, and deceit/misrepresentation, and Carrillo and Gruver say the Vanderpumps knew about the plans for Bar Varsity but moved ahead with their construction anyway. They are asking for a restraining order against the couple as well as a halt on construction until the juried trial is complete.
The Plaintiffs are seeking millions in damages and say in the lawsuit that the “Defendants’ misconduct was so blatant, deliberate, intentional, malicious, and with reckless disregard for the rights of the Plaintiffs.”
