‘Southern Hospitality’ Star Reveals What Makes Her Show Different

Leva Bonaparte says there is nothing fake about her Bravo reality show, “Southern Hospitality.”

The “Southern Charm” spinoff, set at  Republic Garden & Lounge in Charleston, South Carolina, has been compared to “Vanderpump Rules,” but Bonaparte insists her show is an authentic look at the restaurant industry with her real employees.

“There’s not an ounce of anything contrived or fake,” Bonaparte told Parade in a January 2025 interview. “I remember I got so much smoke for that like, ‘Leva hired models.’ No, I didn’t! The models are in New York and LA!”

“I really do love my group, and I love what hospitality does for people,” the restaurant owner added. “It’s one of the few industries where people from so many different worlds meet and I think there’s not a lot of that. That makes for a beautiful show.”

The third season of “Southern Hospitality” features Bonaparte’s employees Joe Bradley, Bradley Carter, TJ Dinch, Maddi Reese, Emmy Sharrett, Mia Alario, Will Kulp, Grace Lilly, Michols Peña, Molly Moore, Lake Rucker, and Austin Stephan.

Leva Bonaparte Said Her Staff Wants To Be in the Hospitality Industry

In a video interview, Bonaparte further explained that her staffers had a long history together before Bravo’s cameras rolled in. “Years of history,” she emphasized. “And they all really want to be in this industry. It’s not like they came working for me because they thought like ‘Oh I want to be a comedian one day’ or whatever it was.”

Bonaparte noted there was one exception. “You know the only one that really has, like, aspirations that are outside of hospitality is Maddie. But it was DJing, which is why she was in our industry in the first place. I met Maddie when she was like a little baby coming out of college working at Bourbon N’ Bubbles and I was like, ‘You’re really smart like, do you want to do more?’”

Bonaparte admitted that newcomers Peña, Moore, Rucker, and Stephan are all “lookers” but are also great workers.

The Original ‘Vanderpump Rules’ Cast Members Were All Aspiring Actors & Models

Bonaparte didn’t specifically compare her show to “Vanderpump Rules.” But in November, Bravo announced a complete reboot of the Emmy-nominated reality show with a new cast for season 12. The new cast members will all work at Lisa Vanderpump’s SUR Lounge, unlike the OGs who stopped working there many years ago.

When “Vanderpump Rules” debuted in 2013, the premise was that the SUR staffers were working at the restaurant while trying to fulfill their dreams of making it in Hollywood.

According to WeHo Online, Jax Taylor was described as an actor and model, his then-girlfriend Stassi Schroeder as a model, Scheana Marie as an actor and singer, and Tom Sandoval as an actor and model. Katie Maloney was dubbed a “music supervisor.”

In the pilot episode, Schroeder famously said, “Working at SUR is different than working at any other restaurant. The servers all want to be models, actors, writers, singers. The servers at other Hollywood restaurants just want to be waiters at SUR.”

In a December 2024 interview with Entertainment Tonight, Vanderpump confirmed she has “an existing group that will replace the longtime cast members. “But there’s always room for people because, you know, it’s West Hollywood. It’s people are always coming through the door, ‘Can I have a job?’” she added.