Sarma Melngailis is a businesswoman and co-founder of the Pure Good and Wine restaurant. She is also the creator of the brand One Luck Duck. One Luck Duck is the name of her previous store in New York. Her restaurant and shop both serve Vegan fare. Her brand and restaurant were founded to promote the consumption of vegan raw food in New York City.
Unfortunately, she did not make much money in her business because her restaurant closed in 2015. She had to close the restaurant because she couldn’t pay her employees’ wages. But, years later, Sarma has paid off all of her employees’ debts with proceeds from the latest Netflix release, Bad Vegan: Fame. Fraud. Fugitives.
Quick Facts
| Full Real Name | Sarma Melngailis |
| Nickname | Sarma |
| Language | English |
| School Name | Newton North High School. |
| Alma Mater | 1. University of Pennsylvania 2. Wharton School. 3. College of Arts and Science French Culinary Institute |
| Education | 1. B.S majoring in Economics 2. B.A. in Economics |
| Profession | Businesswoman |
| Zodiac Sign | Virgo |
| Nationality | American |
| Ethnicity | European |
| Net worth | Not Known |
| Age (as of 2024) | 52 years old. |
| Date of Birth | September 10, 1972 (Sunday) |
| Place of Birth | Riga, Latvia |
| Current Residence | NY |
Sarma Melngailis Biography
The stunning 51-year-old woman Miss. Sarma was born in Riga, Latvia, in north-eastern Europe. She first attended Newton North High School while living in Newton. Her family later relocated to Newton, Massachusetts, where she was raised and educated.
Sarma Melngailis became interested in food after her parents encouraged her to attend the University of Pennsylvania in 1994. She graduated from Wharton School with a B.S. in Economics. She also earned a B.A. in Economics from the College of Arts and Sciences. Miss. obtained two bachelor’s degrees.
Sarma then moved on to work in investment banking at Bear Stearns and private equity at Bain Capital. She later realized that she was not cut out for the world of finance and quit all of her jobs in the industry. Furthermore, she then decided to pursue a degree in food and enrolled at the French Culinary Institute in 1999, where she began her career in the beautiful world of food and beverage.
She later decided to go into the Vegan food business and started her own.
Sarma Melngailis Height, Weight
Sarma Melngailis has a height of 5 ft 5 inches and a weight of 50 KG. Her shoe size is 6. Her body measurements are 34-26-34 inches. She has brown eyes and light brown hair.
Sarma Melngailis Family
From the new Netflix documentary series Bad Vegan: Fame, Fraud, and Fugitives. According to the story, Sarma was born to Susan and John. Similarly, her mother was also a professional chef, so she became involved in the food industry due to her mother. Her father, John, previously worked as a physicist at MIT (Massachusetts Institute of Technology.) Her parents and her sister Ilze were featured in the Netflix series.
The series depicts Sarma’s parents divorcing when she was only nine years old, but John and Susan remarried through mutual consent.
During her parents’ divorce, Sarma Melngaili’s father John began dating a woman named Michaele Weissman, and her mother married a man named Bob Jasse in 1981. After settling with Bob Jasse, Sarma’s mother Susan established Alyson’s Orchard, a 450-acre apple orchard. Susan co-founded the company with Bob and took over when Bob Jasse died in 2002. Sarma’s mother’s company is still in operation and is regarded as one of New England’s most prestigious. Ilze Melngailis, Sarma’s sister, is currently residing in New York. Ilze has a degree in Psychology.
Career
Sarma first opened a Commissary with Mr. Matthew Kenney in 2001 after receiving her Food Certification from the French Culinary Institute. Matthew is a chef as well as an author. Her commissary didn’t last long, and it was closed in 2003. Sarma Melngailis sought advice from Jeffrey Chodorow’s China Grill Management company. Miss Sarma, along with him and Matthew Kenney, opened Pure Food and Wine Restaurant in New York City in June 2004. It was the first Raw Food restaurant in all of New York.
Previously, her restaurant was recognized twice by New York Magazine. It was on Forbes’ list of “All-Star New York Eateries” for nearly five years. It was also named one of Forbes’ Top 100 Restaurants.
Pure Food and Wine used to deliver packed snacks to her store. In 2005, she and Matthew Kenney opened One Luck Duck Juice, a retail takeaway store. It also sells skincare, books, supplements, and various other items.
Sarma could still not pay her employees’ salaries in January 2015, despite having opened her restaurant and store for several years. Her entire staff has fled.
In February 2015, she announced the closure of her restaurant and takeaway shop, apologizing for the situation. She shared that she could not pay the wages due to the low margins and high expenses of ingredients.
Later in April 2015, she reopened her restaurant and store, but most of her staff didn’t join the event after many requests by Sarma. But again, in July 2015, Sarma Melngailis’s remaining staff left working with Sarma because she could still not pay their wages. As a result, she permanently closed all her businesses.
Sarma Melngailis Boyfriend, Dating
When Sarma started her business with Matthey Kenney, she was having love affairs with him. But year, even after working with him, she married Anthony Strangis.
In the documentary series, it has been shown that Sarma Melngailis has introduced Anthony to her mother, Susan. It has also demonstrated that Susan and Anthony kept in touch through email, and he kept demanding money from Susan. Anthony shared with Susan that he needed funds to help Susan. But when Susan was sent to jail, she signed a divorce against Anthony and now living her life single.
Sarma Melngailis Net Worth
As of February 2024, In her recent media statement, Sarma shared that she is still in debt after earning from Netflix and paying her debt of employees’ wages.
Over her Instagram, we had found her spending her day with her dog in her home by reading books and doing other home stuff. She has not shared from which source she is currently earning and how she is managing all her expenses. Later we will update you about her Net worth if someday she shares her current source of earnings.
Trivia
- She is good at cooking.
- Sarma loves to read books.
- She often goes out in the garden for a walk with her dog.
- She loves to eat milk puddings.
- Her favorite fruit is Blueberries.
- Her pet dog’s name is Leon.
