Everything To Know About Wellingtons LA From Shark Tank

"Shark Tank" has a history of spotlighting food products that end up growing on a national level. For example, after "Shark Tank," restaurant chain Fat Shack expanded its total number of restaurants from 11 to 28 after securing an investment from Mark Cuban.

Business owners Arya Alexander and Anastasia Geroulis will surely hope to achieve something similar when they pitch their business Wellingtons LA on "Shark Tank" Season 15, Episode 3. The core idea behind Wellingtons LA is as simple as its name suggests — Alexander and Geroulis sell various food products inspired by the traditional beef Wellington. Their line includes a few standard takes on the dish as well as some iterations on the concept unique to the business.

Wellingtons LA is already an established brand with national distribution, but Alexander and Geroulis are surely looking to increase both brand recognition and its nationwide availability. Here's everything fans of "Shark Tank" need to know about the Wellingtons LA business and what makes it stand out from its competition.

On the official Wellingtons LA website, Arya Alexander recounts how the idea for their business came to him and his fiancée Anastasia Geroulis while they were in the midst of deciding on what to have for dinner during the COVID-19 pandemic lockdown. They decided to cook a beef Wellington that night and were so inspired by the experience that they spent the following three months continuing to make versions of the dish for friends and family.

A bio for the business on Goldbelly specifies that the idea to make beef Wellington in particular came straight from celebrity chef Gordon Ramsay, whose fondness for the dish is well known. Alexander and Geroulis happened to catch Ramsay making a beef Wellington on TV that fateful night and decided that they would take a stab at the recipe themselves.

"The reason our Wellington is special is we're a mom-and-pop shop. Just very small, and getting as high-quality ingredients as possible from our local butchers," Alexander says in an original video on their Goldbelly page. Wellingtons LA, then, provides something of an artisanal alternative to Ramsay's famed version of the classic dish.

Wellingtons LA isn't Arya Alexander's first business. According to his LinkedIn profile, he co-founded both a faux fur company called UnHide and a valet app called CurbStand. Anastasia Geroulis' LinkedIn profile, meanwhile, lists consulting work for CurbStand as well as experience at jewelry and skincare companies.

In 2018, Voyage LA interviewed Alexander about his experience creating and managing CurbStand. At that time Alexander was proudest of the changes he spearheaded to the company's culture after he became its CEO. "Before I took over as CEO, there were many layoffs and uncertainties as we were struggling to gain traction and financing; however, since 2016, we've been able to grow steadily to a solid admin team of 12, and we posted our first profitable quarter at the beginning of 2018, a feat few tech startups are able to claim," he said.

Alexander, then, boasts years of business experience prior to founding Wellingtons LA, and it was most likely his existing know-how that resulted in his latest company landing a spot on "Shark Tank."

The Wellingtons LA website catalogs what are essentially six different takes on the beef Wellington dish. The company's flagship offering is, of course, the beef Wellington in its most traditional form. "Center-cut filet mignon (aka Chateaubriand), coated with dijon mustard with a shallot and garlic mushroom duxelles, wrapped in puff pastry, and topped with flaky salt, rosemary, and thyme," reads a description of the base product. They sell this standard option in personal, large, and XL sizes.

As a cheaper alternative to its filet mignon product, the company sells a cheeseburger beef Wellington at less than half the cost of the basic personal Wellington. Also offered is a pack of 15 cheeseburger "Welly bites," each of which is essentially a cheeseburger beef Wellington in concept, but in a size that can be eaten in one or two bites. The sole other Welly bites product is a Buffalo chicken option.

The remaining two Wellingtons LA products are significant divergences from the basic dish. First, the company sells a breakfast Wellington, containing breakfast sandwich ingredients in a puff pastry shell. "Ever wonder what Gordon Ramsay would cook if he worked the breakfast shift at McDonalds ... now you know," reads an Instagram post about the product. Finally, perhaps its most left-field offering is called the "Nutellington with Nutella," consisting of what appears to be a dual Nutella and cream filling housed in puff pastry.

Reviews for Wellingtons LA on the company's Goldbelly page date back to July of 2021. "Absolutely delish!! I would definitely order again," wrote Colette W. at that time, in the first review of the company for the platform.

A more recent review, meanwhile, praises both the execution of the classic beef Wellington dish and a sauce that Wellingtons LA packages with it. "This is the best Beef Wellington our family has ever eaten! To say it is amazing is an understatement! The horse radish sauce was an added taste bonus!" a customer named Nancy G. wrote in June 2023.

The page listing each product on the official Wellingtons LA website likewise appends ratings to each item, and while reviews are altogether scant, they universally consist of perfect five-star ratings. On "Shark Tank," then, Arya Alexander and Anastasia Geroulis can boast what appears to be considerable customer satisfaction as one of their business' major selling points.

Wellingtons founders Ayra and Anastasia "Tasha" Alexander enter the "Shark Tank" seeking $200,000 in exchange for 10% — imputing a $2 million valuation that they'll need to back up with solid numbers.

While the taste of the company's various frozen Beef Wellingtons impresses all five Sharks (including Kevin O'Leary, who apparently spends hours making them at home), none of them can wrap their heads around its business model. Though all of its sales are direct-to-consumer, Wellingtons distributes through a third-party delivery service that devours its 75% gross margins. Despite doing $313,000 in sales the previous year, the company lost $260,000.

Guest-shark CEO Michael Rubin and Mark Cuban both go out, urging Ayra and Tasha to make serious changes to their distribution. Though they reveal at the 11th hour that they have a purchase order from a hotel chain, Lori Greiner just isn't passionate about the product. As always, if she's not passionate, she can't invest. Kevin O'Leary goes out as well, as he sells a competing product through his Chef Wonderful brand.

Barbara Corcoran, the final shark still in play, gives Wellingtons one last chance to win her over. It's ultimately for naught, however, as the entrepreneurs explain they need her to help jumpstart a co-packing shift, a venture seemingly just too risky for the seasoned shark. With the final shark refusing to bite, the pair exit the tank without a deal.