Popular former NYC vegan restaurant owner finally arrested
Fugitive former owner of New York vegan restaurant popular with A-listers finally arrested after months on the run when she ordered a cheese PIZZA at a Tennessee Domino's
Sarma Melngailis, 43, tracked down at a Tennessee Holiday Inn Tuesday
She and husband Anthony Strangis, 35, were discovered after they ordered Domino's pizza
Melngailis had not been seen since July 2015, right before her restaurant Pure Food and Wine closed for third time that year
She is wanted in New York for grand larceny, criminal tax fraud, scheme to defraud, and violation of labor law
Restaurant was a favorite spot for celebrities such as Woody Harrelson
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A former high end raw food restaurateur has finally been arrested after being on the run for nearly a year, in the midst of unpaid wage lawsuits.
Sarma Melngailis, 43, who once ran Manhattan celebrity hang out Pure Food and Wine was tracked to a Holiday Inn in Sevierville, Tennessee after she and husband Anthony Strangis, 35, ordered Domino's Pizza.
The pair were arrested without incident Tuesday and are being held at Sevier County Jail.
Sarma Melngailis, 43, (left) who once ran Manhattan celebrity hang out Pure Food and Wine was tracked to a Holiday Inn in Sevierville, Tennessee after she and Anthony Strangis, 35, (right) ordered Domino's Pizza
Trouble began in January 2015 when 60 staff members said they weren't being paid and subsequently staged multiple walk outs and protests. Melngailis hadn't been seen since July 2015
The restaurant was popular with celebrities, but had financial difficulties before the owner vanished. Above, Melngailis (second from left) with chef Matthew Kenney, actor Woody Harrelson (left) and actor Jason Lewis
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Melngailis is wanted in New York for grand larceny, criminal tax fraud, scheme to defraud, and violation of labor law, Sevierville Police officials told WBIR.
While Strangis is also wanted for grand larceny, scheme to defraud, and violation of labor law.
From January 2014 to January 2015, Melngailis transferred over $1.6 million from the business accounts to her personal bank account, reported New York Daily News.
Melngailis - who also authored several raw food cookbooks - and Strangis took money from investors, didn't pay $400,000 in taxes and spent $2 million at Foxwoods, Mohegan Sun Casinos, luxury jewelry, trips to Europe and Uber rides, it is alleged.
The Gramercy restaurant, once popular with celebrities such as Woody Harrelson and Jason Lewis opened in 2004 and was one of the city's first raw vegan eateries.
It was also the venue where Alec Baldwin picked up his wife-to-be Hilaria Thomas in 2011.
Pure Food and Wine was also the venue where Alec Baldwin (left) met his wife-to-be Hilaria Thomas (right) in 2011
Workers protested the restaurant in Gramercy (pictured) after it closed in July, the third time it had been shuttered since January, when the owner also went missing
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She later resurfaced, telling Well and Good in February that the restaurant had a 'complicated history' and had suffered under debt since its founding.
'People from the outside see a busy restaurant, and they assume I must live in a huge penthouse…and it could not be more opposite. There are plenty of times I have not been paying my own rent to make payroll,' Melngailis said.
The chef blamed part of the debt on the expense of her ingredients and said she wishes she was more 'communicative'.
'I have a tendency, when I'm feeling bad and down, to really hide and work on my computer and try to fix things,' she said.
Melngailis who also authored several raw food cookbooks and Strangis took money from investors, didn't pay $400,000 in taxes and spent $2 million at Foxwoods, Mohegan Sun Casinos, luxury jewelry, trips to Europe and Uber rides, it is claimed
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The restaurant reopened in April with new investment, though trouble struck again and it closed in June.
After reopening for several days in July, it has not operated again since, with Melngailis continuing to stay out of sight.
