VANDERPUMP Rules’ Ariana Madix and Katie Maloney could have had Something About Her opened by now if Chef Penny was more involved, a source exclusively revealed to The U.S. Sun.

Chef Penny Davidi has been an integral part of Something About Her and was last featured on the March 26 episode of Vanderpump Rules.

What’s going on now with her relationship with the sandwich shop’s owners, Ariana, 38, and Katie, 37, is a lot different than what it was like this past summer when the show filmed season 11.

A source has confirmed exclusively to The U.S. Sun that the celebrity chef is still involved with Something About Her, but that the reality stars have taken things into their own hands to involve themselves more in the process.

“Penny hasn’t been as active recently because Ariana and Katie wanted to be on the front end of things and be more hands-on.

“But Penny has always been a supporter and will continue to be a supporter,” a source exclusively shared with The U.S. Sun.

Amid ongoing issues preventing the shop from opening, the source said that “a lot of these delays had nothing to do with Penny.”

However, she is “still a partner” and “has a stake” in the restaurant.

The source continued: “As far as she’s concerned, Penny’s available to help and has been available to help all along.

“She certainly could have had this open a long time ago.”

The source noted that Penny is waiting, just like many fans, for the West Hollywood café to open for business.

“She poured her heart and soul into it, and she is a constructive person who also has an immense level of experience and expertise in the industry,” the source continued.

“She was hired to effectuate a lot of the steps you would take if you’re going to build a business.

“Having a lot of good relationships with the city and with operators in the restaurant space, Penny would have had Something About Her open already if Ariana and Katie reached out for help.”

TRADEMARK DRAMA

Bravo fan account pages have begun speculating that Penny’s trademark filing has something to do with the restaurant delay.

However, when reached for comment, the attorney on the trademark, Jonathan Lee Borsuk, told The U.S. Sun exclusively that the trademark application “is not holding up the opening of the restaurant.”

Penny owns the trademark Something About Her through her company, Put a Fork in It LLC, and the lawyer representing the trademark is her husband Jonathan.

“There were conversations about several logistical steps to getting the restaurant open and the brand protected.

“Penny had said, ‘Look, one of the things that we should do as a partnership is establish trademark protection,’ Jonathan explained.

“Katie and Ariana said, ‘Yeah, that would be great if you do that.’

“And Penny said, ‘Yeah, I can have my husband obtain the trademark so that it’s protected.’ And so that’s what she did.”

The application for the trademark, Something About Her, was initially submitted in August 2023 and is still pending.

Jonathan told The U.S. Sun: “Penny remains a supporter of the restaurant and would love to help in any way that she can for the restaurant to open at the earliest possible time and then for it to be successful.

“She’s a phone call, if not a meeting, away from helping in any of these areas that it seems like Katie and Ariana may be having a challenging time with.”

FINAL HURDLE

The U.S. Sun previously reported that one major permit is still left before being able to open shop.

As of January 3, 2024, an application was submitted through the City of West Hollywood for a new 20 sq ft outdoor dining area in the front of the North Robertson Boulevard restaurant.

The application indicated that the owners would be adding a new awning and signage for Something About Her.

As of March 27, the application is still under review and there has been no construction to the front of the shop since then.

Luckily for the Bravo stars, however, they did officially get their liquor license as of February 26.

Katie and Ariana have said in the past that they wanted to include a wine bar inside their Parisian-style eatery as they plan on selling beer and wine, plus wine-based cocktails.

AS SEEN ON VPR

As seen on episode six of season 11, Penny sat down with her business partners to help them hire staff.

Ariana said, “Throughout all these bumps in the road, the one thing that has remained the same is our vision when it comes to the sandwich shop.

“Penny’s really working on, like, the nuts and bolts, of the restaurant.”

The now-Broadway star noted that she appreciates all that Penny has to offer, especially when it comes to her expertise.

The Food Network chef has previously helped Lisa Vanderpump curate the menus for her restaurants, Pump and TomTom.

Lisa was the one who connected Ariana and Katie with Penny given her experience working with her, a source revealed.

On the March 26 episode, Penny helped put together the sandwiches for the owners’ castmates to try for a second time (they also did a tasting in season 10).

As Lala Kent, Tom Schwartz, Scheana Shay and James Kennedy tasted the sandwiches inside the shop, Penny read off the names of each of them including the Caprese, the Greek Goddess, the Soppressata and the Champs-Élysées.

GRAND OPENING BASH

In July 2023, the culinary consultant spoke exclusively with The U.S. Sun, appearing to be excited about the grand opening of SAH.

Chef Penny, who described herself as “the operating arm,” revealed at the time that they were planning “three different openings.”

“We have one that’s all just celebrities, we’ll be inviting the likes of Selena Gomez and Sofia Richie, that kind of crowd,” she spilled.

“So we’ll have a 30-person brunch for super VIPS, then we’re going to family and friends, and then one for press and influencers.”

She suspected it would be open “in the next couple of weeks.”

As previously reported, the shop has run into many issues with the health department and getting the necessary permits needed to officially open.

During Katie’s March 19 appearance on Watch What Happens Live, she said she could not commit to an opening day just yet, but was adamant that the shop would open sometime this year.

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“You know that it’s coming very soon … so, very soon,” she told host Andy Cohen.

The U.S. Sun has reached out to Ariana and Katie’s reps for comment.