The owner of a popular restaurant in Evanston, Illinois, has filed a lawsuit against her brother, who owns another restaurant in Highland Park, claiming he stole her menu.
The Chicago Tribune reports that Marla Cramin, owner of Sarkis Cafe, is suing her brother, Scott Jaffe, as well as his wife, Debra Jaffe. The Jaffes own Uptown Diner in Highland Park. In the lawsuit, Cramin alleges that her brother, who used to manage Sarkis Cafe, copied the restaurant's complete menu. She also claims he is misrepresenting Uptown Diner by trying to affiliate it with her restaurant.
The menu at Sarkis Cafe shows typical diner fare, including omelets, French toast, hashbrowns and sandwiches, but there are a few specialty items, such as the "Original Sarkis Sandwiches." These sandwiches are all served on French bread and topped with white cheese, mayo, green peppers, tomatoes and onions.
Uptown Diner's menu also features typical diner food as well as "Uptown Sandwiches" that use similar ingredients to the "Sarkis Sandwiches," namely French bread, cheese, mayo, green peppers, tomatoes and onions. The menu is, however, more extensive than Sarkis Cafe's menu, including salads and other dishes that don't appear on Cramin's menu.
Jaffe told the Tribune that he rejects the idea that he serves the same food as Cramin.
The brother and sister were entangled in a previous lawsuit that was settled in December in which Cramin claimed her brother was affiliating himself and his restaurant with Sarkis Cafe against her will, according to the Tribune.
