Pinky Cole

Aisha "Pinky" Cole (born December 8, 1988)[1] is a Jamaican-American restaurateur. She is the owner and operator of Slutty Vegan, a plant-based burger restaurant chain in Atlanta, Georgia.[1]

Pinky Cole
Cole in December 2018
Born
Aisha Cole

1988 (age 31–32)
Baltimore, Maryland
NationalityJamaican-American
OccupationRestaurateur
Known forSlutty Vegan restaurant

Early life and education

Cole was born and raised in Baltimore.[2] Her parents are Jamaican immigrants and Rastafarians;[3] her mother Ichelle Cole is a musician in the reggae group Strykers' Posse.[1] Her father served prison time for his activity in a drug ring for the first 20 years of her life and was then deported to Jamaica.[1][4] Cole became a vegetarian in 2007, and a vegan in 2014.[1][5]

Cole received her bachelor's degree from Clark Atlanta University.[6][7] She was elected “Miss Clark Atlanta” in 2008 and is a member of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Incorporated.[8]

Career

After college, Cole moved first to Los Angeles to become an actress, and then to New York to work in television production.[1][9] Her first restaurant, Pinky’s Jamaican and American Restaurant, operated in Harlem in for two years, until she shuttered it in 2016 after a grease fire.[1][2] Cole moved back to Atlanta and worked as a casting director for programs such as Iyanla: Fix My Life.[1][7]

Slutty Vegan

In July 2018, Cole was inspired to create a vegan restaurant due to her own cravings for vegan junk food. She came up with a name Slutty Vegan as a provocative hook.[7] She stated in an interview, "Slutty Vegan, to my mind, is someone who eats vegan but enjoys junk food—as long as it’s not dead. I knew the name would be a great hook to help people to reimagine food."[2] That year she sold her first vegan burgers through delivery apps and opened a food truck in September of that year.[1] In January 2019, she opened the first Slutty Vegan brick-and-mortar restaurant in the Westview neighborhood of Atlanta.[1] The restaurant is known for its long lines with hours-long wait times.[1][4] Cole also operates two Slutty Vegan food trucks and opened a second restaurant location in Atlanta in the summer of 2019.[1][10]

Philanthropy

Cole and fellow graduate Stacy Lee paid off the debts of 30 Clark Atlanta University seniors in September 2019.[11][12]

References
  1. Severson, Kim (2019-07-01). "A Naughty Name, a Virtuous Menu and a Line Down the Block". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2020-02-19.
  2. Solomon, Micah. "The Slutty Vegan: Young, African American Founder Pinky Cole's Wild Success With Playful Vegan Food". Forbes. Retrieved 2020-02-19.
  3. Grant, Jasmine. "Going Green: Slutty Vegan Founder Pinky Cole Is On A Mission To Get Us Eating Cleaner". Essence. Retrieved 2020-02-20.
  4. "Black-owned vegan restaurants are spicing up Southern cuisine". www.theadvertiser.com. Retrieved 2020-02-19.
  5. Shigley, Debra (2019-03-14). "How Pinky Cole used Instagram to make Slutty Vegan's burgers a viral hit IRL". Atlanta Magazine. Retrieved 2020-02-20.
  6. Contributor, A. B. S. (2020-01-14). "Slutty Vegan Founder Pinky Cole Dishes on Success of Viral Eatery, Celeb Customers and How She Hit It Big". Atlanta Black Star. Retrieved 2020-02-19.
  7. France, Lisa Respers. "Slutty Vegan restaurant a plant-based burger sensation". CNN. Retrieved 2020-02-20.
  8. "Pinky Cole's 'Slutty Vegan' is vegan food meat eaters can love | The Atlanta Voice". The Atlanta Voice | Atlanta GA News. 2019-01-10. Retrieved 2020-02-20.
  9. "How This Newbie Restauranteur Started a Vegan Revolution in Atlanta". Essence. Retrieved 2020-02-20.
  10. Yvonne Zusel, The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. "Slutty Vegan to open second Atlanta location on Edgewood Avenue". ajc. Retrieved 2020-02-20.
  11. Najja Parker, The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. "Slutty Vegan owner helps pay tuition of 30 Clark Atlanta students". ajc. Retrieved 2020-02-20.
  12. "Slutty Vegan founder helps Clark Atlanta student on verge of dropping out over tuition costs". www.cbs8.com. Retrieved 2020-02-20.
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