Pinky Cole, Slutty Vegan founder, welcomes baby girl 

Restauranteur Pinky Cole and her partner Derrick Hayes have welcomed a new daughter.

According to an exclusive report in People, Cole, the founder of the wildly popular Slutty Vegan restaurant, said there’s a reason the couple’s daughter has an initial instead of a first name.

“Derrick thought he could only make girls, so when we found out we were having a girl, we decided to make her a girl junior,” Cole told People. “[She’s] such a special baby with a simple but unique name.” 

They named her D Ella Hayes.

“She is the only person we’ve heard of that has only one letter in her first name,” Cole said.

D is Hayes’s third daughter. His other daughters are from a previous relationship.

Cole and Hayes, who were recently featured on the cover of Essence, shared that their daughter is “such a calm baby” who is “smart, funny and a joy to be around.” 

The restauranteur couple have also tested out a concept restaurant called Dinkie’s, which is a combination of their two unique businesses — Cole’s vegan food and Hayes’ cheesesteaks that he sells at Big Dave’s Cheesesteaks. 

Cole told Essence that their differences made the couple keep their relationship quiet initially.

“To be honest, there was a business concern that I am in the vegan community and he’s not,” Cole admitted. “But what I realize is who cares what people say. Even though we’re different, we can still exist together and still love each other — because we are tapped into each other’s hearts. And,” she added, “whoever’s got something to say about that can kick rocks.”

Still, she teased that converting Hayes is on her to-do list. 

In their Essence interview, the couple noted that their new daughter is not the only addition to their family—they plan to expand their businesses, including new Slutty Vegan restaurants in metro cities across the U.S. in 2022. 

Additionally, Cole’s first cookbook Eat Plants B*tch will be released this summer by Simon & Schuster. 

“I am so fortunate to have my mother and Derrick’s mother, as constant support in our household,” Cole told People. “We are both so very busy growing our food empires, we wouldn’t be able to do what we love without our village. “

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