They've chalked up years of successful film and TV credits, and now Ellen DeGeneres and Portia de Rossi are adding 'restaurateurs' to their resume.
The Hollywood Reporter says the married pair are the latest investors — partnering with singer Chrissie Hynde and producer Steve Bing — in a new vegan eatery set to open in California's San Fernando Valley.
Vegan chef Tal Ronnen — who catered the couple's vegan wedding in 2008 — will design the menu for the Ventura Boulevard restaurant.
Veganism — practiced by those who do not eat any animal or dairy products — has long been a pet cause of DeGeneres, who launched a vegan blog, "Going Vegan With Ellen," this year as part of her daily talk show.
In an interview with Katie Couric, animal lover DeGeneres, 53, reveals why she adopted the lifestyle in 2008.
"I forced myself to watch a documentary called Earthlings that's inside footage of factory farms and dairy farms," the talk show host and comic told Couric. "You see that and go 'I can't participate in that. I can't be a part of something that is suffering.' Fifty billion animals a year are killed and I think we all fool ourselves that it's a quick death, and it's a very disturbing reality."
Since revamping her diet, DeGeneres has seen immeasurable long-term effects.
"I do it because I love animals and saw the reality and couldn't ignore it anymore. I'm healthier for it, I'm happier for it," she told Couric. "I believe in positive thinking and I can't imagine that if you're putting something in your body that's filled with fear or anxiety or pain, that isn't going to be inside of you. I used to be a more anxious person and sad, and I think not putting that stuff in my body [has helped]."
