Slutty Vegan Will Open Its First Texas Location in Dallas This Summer

One of Atlanta’s favorite restaurants is making its way to Texas, with the first location in Dallas. Slutty Vegan is bringing its take on plant-based food to Deep Ellum. Perhaps a little ironically, it will be on Main Street just across from one of the neighborhood’s favorite meat-first joints, Pecan Lodge. It is slated to open its doors in May 2023, serving lunch, dinner, sit-down, and takeaway meals for the late-night crowd.

Slutty Vegan specializes in vegan comfort food, and the Dallas menu will include the One Night Stand, a vegan burger with all-vegan bacon, cheese, caramelized onions, lettuce, tomato, and Slut Sauce on a vegan Hawaiian bun; the Heux Boy, a po-boy with vegan shrimp tossed in a New Orleans-style batter; and the Hollywood Hooker, a vegan chopped Philly with jalapenos, bell peppers, caramelized onions, vegan provolone, and mayo on a hoagie, according to a press release.

Madelynne Boykin

Pinky Cole, the founder and CEO of Slutty Vegan, is ready to invite “vegans and meat-eaters alike [to] break free from kale and quinoa salads.” As part of her expansion into new cities and media, Cole released Eat Plants, Bitch, a vegan cookbook, at the end of 2022 and opened a new restaurant in Harlem, New York City, and two in Atlanta earlier this year. Cole says she was drawn to opening a restaurant in Deep Ellum because of its “strong cultural roots as one of the first commercial districts in the city for African-Americans, bringing to life Slutty Vegan’s philosophy of supporting historically Black neighborhoods.”

Alongside its expansion, Slutty Vegan faced multiple lawsuits in 2023 from employees claiming wage theft. In New York, three employees in Fort Greene alleged that the restaurant withheld thousands of dollars in bonuses and overtime pay. And in Atlanta, a former employee at Cole’s Bar Vegan alleges unpaid wages. Cole denied the allegations in Atlanta.

With regard to the lawsuit in New York, the company issued this statement: “Slutty Vegan is deeply committed to creating a positive and supportive work environment for all of its employees, and takes the wellbeing of its staff very seriously. Slutty Vegan takes its legal obligations seriously, and especially those relating to its staff. It maintains an open door policy and invites employees to express their concerns with management so that they can be examined and resolved in a fair, reasonable and lawful manner. We are aware of the lawsuit recently filed in the U.S. District Court in New York, and are reviewing it with our legal counsel. Slutty Vegan does not comment on any pending litigation, except that it is committed to complying with all applicable laws. Slutty Vegan is passionately dedicated to making a positive impact, not only with respect to its employees and customers, but also within the communities it serves.”

Slutty Vegan will open at 2707 Main Street in Deep Ellum in May 2023.

Correction: Wednesday, April 26, 2023, 11:48 a.m.: This article has been updated to add a statement from Slutty Vegan on a pending lawsuit in New York.