Rachel Leviss Reveals the Exact Pasta Dish That Caused Years of Drug Rumors to Boil Over
The 'Vanderpump Rules' alum recommends adding shrimp to the dish, for a "chef's kiss" meal
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Rachel “Raquel” Leviss is setting the record straight on pastagate.
In a 2018 episode of Vanderpump Rules, Leviss’ ex James Kennedy got into a heated argument with Lala Kent that addressed Kent and Kennedy’s friend Logan Noh eating the pasta Leviss had ordered during Kennedy’s DJ set at Sur.
“It’s not about the pasta!” Kennedy memorably shouted, his passion prompting an internet rumor that “pasta” was a code word for drugs.
In the latest episode of her podcast Rachel Goes Rogue, the reality star says that they were, in fact, just arguing about penne — and reveals the specific dish.
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“Pasta is not code word for any substances,” she says. “It really was about the pasta, you guys.”
“So, I was working one night at Sur, and Lala was there with Logan and some friends. And I had my employee meal, which was the Penne Siciliane, with capers, pine nuts and olives,” Leviss continues. “Delicious. If you want to add a protein, I highly recommend the shrimp. Chef’s kiss. They don’t have it on the menu anymore, unfortunately. But at the time, that was the pasta that I ordered.”
As Leviss remembers it, she had a few bites of the dish and then had to run to one of her tables.
“Lala ate the rest of my pasta,” she explains. “So it became, like, a bigger thing on season 6 of Vanderpump Rules because James was trying to make the point that ‘It’s not about the pasta, it’s about you disrespecting my girlfriend and laughing about it,’ because she’s belittled me for years.”
“But people thought, like, there’s no way this is actually about pasta,” she adds. “They can’t be this passionate about someone eating someone else’s pasta. So it’s not code word for anything, guys. We can put that rumor to bed now.”
During a Watch What Happens Live appearance at the time, former Vanderpump Rules cast member Kristen Doute assured Andy Cohen, “Pasta is not the code word for cocaine.” (However, her account of the incident names a different Sur menu item, the angel hair checca.)
During Wednesday’s podcast episode, Leviss also cleared up another misconception — that she and Ariana Madix were “best friends” before Leviss’ affair with Madix’s boyfriend Tom Sandoval ended their nine-year relationship.
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“I think for me, when people use the word 'best friend' to define Ariana and my friendship, I tend to automatically get defensive with that,” Leviss said. “Because for me, I didn't consider her a best friend, and I didn't think that she considered me a best friend.”
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