“It’s actually far more like Below Deck to me”: Leva Bonaparte’s response to fans comparing Southern Hospitality to Vanderpump Rules

Southern Hospitality season 1 premiered on Monday, featuring Southern Charm’s Leva Bonaparte as the lead cast member.

The new show revolves around Leva and her husband Lamar Bonaparte's restaurant business. Together, the couple has four restaurants in Charleston, South Carolina. Southern Hospitality is majorly focused on their nightclub, Republic Garden & Lounge.

The first episode aired on November 28, 2022. Fans were initially intrigued by the drama and found the show similar to Bravo’s Vanderpump Rules. However, Leva did not agree with fans’ verdict as she thought her show was more like Below Deck.

In an interview with Bravo’s The Daily Dish, she said:

“When you’re on deck at Republic, there’s no time for dillydallying and all that. It’s chaos. It’s hundreds of people [and] it’s high liability. It’s keeping people safe, it’s keeping the experience elevated. It’s actually far more like Below Deck to me, in terms of the adrenaline of the business.”

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Leva Bonaparte explains difference between Southern Hospitality and Vanderpump Rules

In the interview with Bravo’s The Daily Dish, Leva Bonaparte explained that Southern Hospitality and Below Deck employees have similar responsibilities, which is keeping guests safe when “booze and egos” are involved.

For those unaware, Below Deck is a Bravo show that centers around superyachts' employees and their drama. Vanderpump Rules, on the other hand, revolved around socialite Lisa Vanderpump’s restaurant business and its employees’ drama. Hence, viewers felt that Leva’s Southern Hospitality had a similar plot line.

In the interview, Leva mentioned that she knew fans would compare her show to Vanderpump Rules because both series revolve around the hospitality industry.

Explaining the difference between the two reality TV shows, Leva stated:

“When you think about Vanderpump [Rules], it’s L.A. and [the cast members] are sort of trying to get to something, whereas these kids [at Republic] are in what they want to be in. They want to be in hospitality, they want to be opening clubs. Hospitality is a big business in the city we live in.”

She continued:

“There is no city that has nightlife like Charleston, and I mean [out of] every city in the USA. I don’t really think there’s anything comparable to our King Street on any given night.”

Meanwhile, fans had mixed reactions after watching the premiere episode of Southern Hospitality. While most felt that it was not an interesting show, some were invested in the drama.

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When will Southern Hospitality season 1 episode 2 air?

Southern Hospitality season 1 will air episode 2 on Monday, December 5, 2022, on Bravo at 9.00 PM ET.

The official synopsis of episode 2, titled Clocking In... Coming Out, reads:

“Leva brings Mikel back to Republic; Grace Lilly fires back at TJ for attacking her work ethic and judging her social media posts; Maddi makes Joe Bradley jealous by bringing her ex-boyfriend to a work event; Mikel risks losing his best friend.”

In the first episode, the show introduced all the members of Republic Garden & Lounge. In addition to Leva, the cast members include Maddi Reese, Will Kulp, Mikel Simmons, Bradley Carter, Emmy Sharrett, Lucía Peña, TJ Dinch, Grace Lilly, Joe Bradley, and Mia Alario.

Maddi and Grace’s subtle rivalry was the highlight of episode 1. It also showed Joe getting jealous of Maddi’s ex-boyfriend and getting involved in a spat with Mikel. The latter was suspended from the Republic for doing business with another restaurant. However, he will return to the nightclub in episode 2.

Meanwhile, viewers can watch episode 1 on Bravo’s site or check for local listings. It is also available on Peacock.

Southern Hospitality airs new episodes every Monday on Bravo at 9.00 PM ET.