All stories about "Wolfgang Puck"

Wolfgang Zwiener, via The Knife, son Peter and a press release, responds to Wolfgang Puck's lawsuit and name confusion Wolfgang's Steakhouse has caused since it opened on Canon Drive, mere steak-knife throwing distance from Puck's Spago and nearby CUT steakhouse. The press release is long (and fully contained after the jump), but the basic rebuttal is that because Wolfgang's Steakhouse by Wolfgang Zwiener has "by Wolfgang Zwiener" prominently placed on all the signage (in fact, it's quite small compared to the Wolfgang's Steakhouse font), and it's been trademarked, Puck does not have a case. Busting through all the legalese and details, it's also noted that Zwiener and Puck's restaurants look nothing alike, and per Peter Zwiener: "My father has been universally known in the steakhouse business as Wolfgang for decades, long before Mr. Puck entered the restaurant business.” So there.

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Wolfgang's Steakhouse, opening night

Well, apparently this town isn't big enough for two Wolfgangs. It's come to our attention that Wolfgang Puck filed a trademark infringement and unfair competition suit today in Los Angeles Superior Court against the owners and operators of Wolfgang's Steakhouse by Wolfgang Zwiener. Zwiener, as you know, opened his New York steakhouse on Canon Drive just a few short blocks from Spago and Wolfgang Puck's steakhouse, Cut. Hilarity ensued. But it's no laughing matter to Puck. From the press release:

“People have come to me and asked why I was opening another steakhouse in Beverly Hills and whether I am going to close CUT. I tell them the new steakhouse has nothing to do with me and they stare in disbelief. The most common reaction is ‘It says Wolfgang’s Steakhouse and you are Wolfgang.’ In over thirty two years, I have never encountered such confusion expressed by my patrons and in the media. My friends have repeatedly urged that I take the steps necessary to correct the ongoing misleading impression. All of this would have been avoided had Mr. Zwiener paid more than lip-service to our 2007 agreement and actually tried to avoid confusion.”

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Carnevino bar, week one

In an extra special Week in Reviews, S. Irene Virbila takes off to Vegas for what seems like two months of meals (if she really ate everything she mentions) and barely comes up for air. The biggest non-news: Batali's Carnevino, Puck's Cut and Trotter's Restaurant Charlie are 'spensive. The shocker: She actually suggests getting a reservation at Cut in Vegas because its easier than Beverly Hills. We boil it down to the best nuggets. First up: The newcomers at the Palazzo.

CARNEVINO:
"Naturally, the star of the steak menu is that pricey fiorentina for two, which by the time I visited a second time had been reduced to $145 from $160."

"Salt makes too strong an entrance in many dishes."

"Bottom line: As good as the beef is here, I'd rather eat at B&B, Batali's more intimate Italian restaurant in the Venetian next door. It's not cheap, either, but it's got more soul -- and a more consistent kitchen."

CUT:
"Though the menu is almost identical to the Beverly Hills steakhouse, the look is quite different from the cool white expanses of Richard Meier's design for the original Cut. This one, from the local design firm ABA, is warmer, featuring generous booths, a striped rug underfoot and bulky geometric chandeliers."

"Prices, at least compared to Carnevino's, seem almost moderate, though in the real world, of course, they're vertigo-inducing -- a 3-pound lobster is a mere $110."

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The James Beard Foundation, the grand arbiters of taste, announced the final nominees for the 2008 awards this morning. There are 52 categories, and if you're really interested in all of them, check the official awards site. Otherwise Angelenos and their restaurants make most of the big categories: Best Restaurateur (Wolfgang Puck), Outstanding Chef (Suzanne Goin), Outstanding Restaurant (Campanile), Best New Restaurant (Osteria Mozza), Rising Star Chef (Matt Molina, the Mozzas), and the list goes on and on. Lots of heavy hitters from NY, SF and Chicago in the same categories, but the Mozzas can take 'em. Other notables: David Myers is the only local chef in the California category; Dave Gardetta's profile of Spago in Los Angeles magazine and Brad A. Johnson's restaurant criticism in Angeleno get nods; Top Chef is nominated in two TV categories; and Saipin Chutima from Lotus of Siam in Vegas gets nod for Best Chef in the Southwest.

The awards, one of the biggest foodie events of the year, will take place on June 8 at Lincoln Center in New York.

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The Palazzo is slowly adding to its restaurant roster. A quick dispatch from our Vegas operative, John Curtas, who got a preview and the above snap of the restaurant earlier this week: "CUT Las Vegas officially opens this weekend, but a sneak peek at the Wolfgang's latest revealed a design by ABA Design's Todd Lenehan that references the Richard Meier original, but stakes its own comfortable-casual claim to the serious business of big-meat eating in Sin City. There won't be anything casual about the prices, although unlike Carnevino across the hall, they won't make you faint. The food promises to be a dead ringer for the Beverly Hills flagship, and from a sneak taste, the imitation was more than just a form of flattery." There's also a lounge, a la Sidebar at the Beverly Wilshire, for those kobe sliders and other fancy bar snacks. This is Wolfie's sixth restaurant in LV since he first opened Spago at the Forum Shops in 1992.
· Eater VegasWire: What's Open at the Palazzo? [~ELA~]
· Lunch at Cut: Three Take-aways [~ELA~]

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