Atlanta businesses not impressed by ‘Real Housewives’
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Monday, November 24, 2008
Throughout the first season of “The Real Housewives of Atlanta,” various local businesses and residents have popped up on the popular Bravo reality series.
Sometimes, the results have been less than flattering.
Elissa Eubanks / eeubanks@ajc.com
When the ‘The Real Housewives of Atlanta,’ have shown up at local businesses the results have not always been flattering.
Todd R. McQueen
Snellville native Jan Smith is known for her vocal coaching talent. She sweetly informed Kim Zolciak that as a singer, ‘You’re living in a very beautiful house with a cracked foundation.’
Ben Gray / bgray@ajc.com/
Guacamole is made table-side at Rosa Mexicano in Atlantic Station. Kim Zolciak was grossed out by this on one episode.
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As viewers gear up for Tuesday night’s reunion show, which concludes the first season with Kim Zolciak, Lisa Wu Hartwell, DeShawn Snow, Sheree Whitfield and NeNe Leakes, here’s how some of the featured local businesses and Atlantans are handling their 15 minutes of fame (shame?).
Locale: Jan Smith Studios
Scenario: Aspiring country singer Kim Zolciak pops by for an assessment from nationally recognized Atlanta vocal coach Jan Smith who has worked with Usher, Sugarland, Ciara and Rob Thomas.
What Makes It Un-‘Real’: As Smith plunks out notes on a piano, Zolciak needs an atlas to find the corresponding notes. Smith sweetly informs Zolciak that as a singer, “You’re living in a very beautiful house with a cracked foundation.”
Zolciak’s reaction: “Jan is nit-picking me. She’s telling me I don’t know the ABCs of music. I don’t need to. I’m a singer.”
Smith says: “I’ve been featured on MTV, VH1 and BET. But I’ve never gotten the level of reaction that I’ve gotten with this silly show. I did this as a favor to [producer and friend] Dallas [Austin]. The good thing is, the people who saw it, saw me being honest with her. They saw me doing what I actually do at work. Someone had to tell her. To me, the show is despicable. Total buffoonery.”
Locale: Rosa Mexicano restaurant at Atlantic Station
Scenario: Sheree talks Kim into trying the eatery’s trademark table-side guacamole.
What Makes It Un-‘Real’: As a waiter prepares the appetizer in a molcajete, Kim is grossed out. “You’re using a rock to make my food?! she shrieks. “You’re out of your [expletive] mind! That can’t be sanitary. It tastes like [expletive]!”
Says Rosa Mexicano general manager Tay Wunn in a statement: “We were very pleased to host ‘The Real Housewives of Atlanta’ and prepare for them our signature Guacamole en Molcajete, which continues to be one of our most popular menu items. Our Guacamole en Molcajete evokes the authentic, rustic traditions of Mexico and is prepared tableside using only the freshest avocados and ingredients. Rest assured that the molcajetes are thoroughly washed and sanitized as are all dishes, flatware and glassware after each use.”
Locale: The campus of Clark-Atlanta University
Scenario: NeNe and her son Bryson taking a tour of the campus.
What Makes It Un-‘Real’: Upon seeing a dorm room, NeNe inquires: “Can you paint the walls and hang a plasma?”
Says Clark-Atlanta director of admissions Dr. Kevin Williams: “They happened to catch me coming back to my office. I looked a little like a deer in the headlights. I’ve had calls from all over the country from friends and family who saw it. I told them, ‘Yes, that was me. I’ve had my 15 minutes!’ I’m happy that Clark Atlanta was portrayed so positively and that our good, bright students were shown in a positive light.”
Locale: parking lot outside Buckhead lunch spot Souper Jenny
Scenario: Kim is in the driver’s seat of a convertible playing a CD of her singing for Sheree.
What Makes it Un-‘Real’: Inexplicably, Kim has a glass of white wine in her hand.
Says Souper Jenny owner Jenny Levison: “We had no idea they were even out in front of our business until it aired on Bravo. To my knowledge, none of them have ever set foot in here. They were probably at the lingerie shop next door. I’ve seen about three minutes of the show. It makes Atlanta look bad. Everything these women talk about is ridiculous. It’s like VH1’s ‘Celebrity Rehab.’ I have no idea where that glass of wine came from either. But it has me considering a car-side wine service. Maybe we’ll start wearing roller skates!”
