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Opinion

Who Pays for My Stolen Dreams? A Restaurant Owner’s Demand for Accountability

Who Pays for My Stolen Dreams? A Restaurant Owner’s Demand for Accountability
People walk past a closed restaurant amid pandemic restrictions and lockdowns in Los Angeles on Dec. 8, 2020. Valerie Macon/AFP via Getty Images
Mollie Engelhart
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Commentary

For 13 years, I poured my heart into Sage Regenerative Kitchen, my Los Angeles chain of five restaurants that employed 350 people and nourished communities with sustainable farm-to-table and local meals. By early 2020, I was poised to sell for $25 million, securing a legacy for my four young children.

Mollie Engelhart
Mollie Engelhart
Author
Mollie Engelhart, regenerative farmer and rancher, is committed to food sovereignty, soil regeneration, and educating on homesteading and self-sufficiency. She is the author of “Debunked by Nature”: Debunk Everything You Thought You Knew About Food, Farming, and Freedom — a raw, riveting account of her journey from vegan chef and LA restaurateur to hands-in-the-dirt farmer, and how nature shattered her cultural programming.