fbpx

BAD VEGAN Exposes the Scandal and Subsequent Downfall of Famed Restaurateur

Netflix/YouTube

BAD VEGAN Exposes the Scandal and Subsequent Downfall of Famed Restaurateur

By Movieguide® Contributor

BAD VEGAN: FAME. FRAUD. FUGITIVES. is a four-part true-crime docuseries streaming on NETFLIX. It is directed by Chris Smith; produced by Ryann Fraser, Chris Smith, and Mark Emms, and edited by Amanda Griffin. The series uncovers the truth behind the famous vegan New York City restaurateur Sarma Melngailis and the scandal surrounding her marriage, arrest, and the downfall of her popular restaurant Pure Food and Wine. 

In 2004, Melngailis, along with two partners, opened the first upscale raw vegan restaurant in New York City. The restaurant was an immediate success and attracted the attention of many high-profile celebrities including Tom Brady, Anne Hathaway, Gisele Bündchen, and Owen Wilson. The next year, the partners opened One Lucky Duck Juice and Takeaway, a retail store attached to Pure Food and Wine. Both businesses thrived, with the restaurants being listed in Forbes’ All-Star New York Eateries over five times. Overnight, Melngailis became the face of the vegan food industry, with magazines and cookbooks seeking to feature her.

In 2011, Melngailis discovered her now former husband, Anthony Strangis, a junk-food-loving gambler with a criminal past, in her friend, Alec Baldwin’s, Twitter mentions. Once married, Melngailis claimed that Strangis, who she eventually came to conclude was a con artist, resorted to cult-like techniques to make her believe all her dreams, including making her dog immoral, would come true. Because of this, she eventually gave him access to all her personal and business accounts, which he cashed out and gambled away in Connecticut casinos. Between 2011 and 2016, the couple defrauded investors more than $2 million and owed hundreds of thousands of dollars in sales tax and failed employee payments. As a result, Melngailis’ thriving businesses fell apart and she and her husband hid from authorities for months before being caught. 

BAD VEGAN: FAME. FRAUD. FUGITIVES.  reflects a materialistic, romantic worldview. Melngailis and her now ex-husband were both focused on earthly values and pleasures. Melngailis was focused on her business and the wealth and fame that came with it. Strangis was also focused on wealth, but he was fueled by an unhealthy addiction to gambling. As a result, he was willing to use manipulation and theft to gain what he wanted from Melngailis, regardless of the consequences to her life. Both individuals’ selfish desires lead them to steal, cheat, neglect their responsibilities, and ultimately run away when their actions caught up to them. While the docuseries does not look favorably upon this couple’s actions, it does allow them to share their side of the story and justify their actions, which further fuels a positive representation of materialism and romanticism.

BAD VEGAN: FAME. FRAUD. FUGITIVES. has an incredibly large amount of profanity and obscenity. Domestic abuse and cult-like techniques such as gaslighting, sleep deprivation, and sexual humiliation are regularly spoken about. Theft, greed, manipulation, criminal fraud, evading police, and justifying one’s negative actions are all prevalent throughout the series.

While Sarma Melngailis’ story is tragic, the docuseries following her story is interesting, engaging, and well produced. The compilation of interviews with Sarma, her family, and the restaurant’s employees provide details and a personal perspective that had not before been publicly known. This, combined with narration, audio recordings, and details from news coverage and the court case, creates a well-rounded in-depth, informative docuseries about the true story of Sarma Melgailis and the rise and fall of her successful reign as the leading vegan New York restaurateur. 

 Because BAD VEGAN: FAME. FRAUD. FUGITIVES. has excessive language and worldview problems that Movieguide® finds excessive.

Now more than ever we’re bombarded by darkness in media, movies, and TV. Movieguide® has fought back for almost 40 years, working within Hollywood to propel uplifting and positive content. We’re proud to say we’ve collaborated with some of the top industry players to influence and redeem entertainment for Jesus. Still, the most influential person in Hollywood is you. The viewer.

What you listen to, watch, and read has power. Movieguide® wants to give you the resources to empower the good and the beautiful. But we can’t do it alone. We need your support.

You can make a difference with as little as $7. It takes only a moment. If you can, consider supporting our ministry with a monthly gift. Thank you.

Movieguide® is a 501c3 and all donations are tax deductible.


Now more than ever we’re bombarded by darkness in media, movies, and TV. Movieguide® has fought back for almost 40 years, working within Hollywood to propel uplifting and positive content. We’re proud to say we’ve collaborated with some of the top industry players to influence and redeem entertainment for Jesus. Still, the most influential person in Hollywood is you. The viewer.

What you listen to, watch, and read has power. Movieguide® wants to give you the resources to empower the good and the beautiful. But we can’t do it alone. We need your support.

You can make a difference with as little as $7. It takes only a moment. If you can, consider supporting our ministry with a monthly gift. Thank you.

Movieguide® is a 501c3 and all donations are tax deductible.