The Knife

Wolfgang Puck lawsuit, Pt. 2: Zwiener responds

Yesterday, I called Peter Zwiener about the Wolfgang vs.Wolfgang lawsuit. (Peter is the son of Wolfgang Zwiener of  Wolfgang's-Steakhouse-by-Wolfgang-Zweiner-who's-not-the-Wolfgang-you're-probably-thinking-about.) The younger Zwiener said he was surprised by the suit and, judging by the press release that he sent late Wednesday afternoon, I believe him.

The first three grafs basically sum up Puck's position, which is a weird strategy (although Zwiener does add the interesting tidbit that the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office recently approved the trademark Wolfgang’s Steakhouse by Wolfgang Zwiener and Puck apparently waived his right to oppose the trademark).

Then there's the boilerplate yadda from Zwiener's lawyer ("we will prevail"), followed by the more subjective defense of "uh-UH!" (Puck's places look contemporary, Zwiener's traditional; signs outside "prominently" feature Zwiener's name) and these quotes from Peter Z: 

“My father has been universally known in the steakhouse business as Wolfgang for decades, long before Mr. Puck entered the restaurant business.” “Our steakhouses have an excellent worldwide reputation for serving quality steak.”

Construction aside (Bumping quotes! Bad form!), the reputation quote reads weirdly -- what, Puck doesn't have that rep? Zwiener has its own reputation and we don't need your stupid name? A sales pitch?

My money's on that last theory, since the next three grafs are pure press kit: "star-studded," "highest-quality," "award-winning," "custom-designed," "suede-wrapped"... sorry, stopping there. It's too early for that many hyphens.

If you're made of stronger stuff, the full release is after the jump.

The Wolfgang Puck lawsuit: Yummy!

Who didn't see this one coming? Wolfgang Puck is suing Wolfgang Zwiener, the restaurateur who just opened WOLFGANG’S STEAKHOUSE BY WOLFGANG ZWIENER on Canon -- located 2 1/2 blocks away from Wolfgang Puck's flagship restaurant, Spago, also on Canon, and 6 1/2 blocks from Wolfgang Puck's steakhouse, Cut.

According to the release announcing the lawsuit:

By also prominently featuring the name “Wolfgang’s STEAKHOUSE,” and minimizing the tag-line “BY WOLFGANG ZWIENER” the lawsuit alleges that the owners and operators of “WOLFGANG’S STEAKHOUSE BY WOLFGANG ZWIENER” (one of whom is affiliated with a company whose license to use the Spago trademark in Japan ended in 2005 and Wolfgang Puck chose not to renew) are brazenly seeking to take unfair advantage of the reputation and enormous good will developed over the last 32 years by Wolfgang Puck and the Wolfgang Puck brand. In addition, the suit alleges that Mr. Zwiener has violated a 2007 agreement whereby it was agreed that if Zwiener opened a restaurant outside of Manhattan he would use his full name “Wolfgang Zwiener” in a manner which would eliminate confusion regarding any affiliation between “WOLFGANG’S STEAKHOUSE” and Wolfgang Puck.

It then goes on to say how, by running 17 fine-dining restaurants across the country, overseeing three corporations, doing TV and writing cookbooks, Wolfgang Puck is basically the essence of Wolfgang-ness and this Wolfgang wannabe is going to get sued so hard he'll wish he opened a McDonald's instead. 

"Why not use the whole name if he's so self confident?" Puck said this morning. "Sooner or later, people find out it's not us. People go (to WOLFGANG'S STEAKHOUSE) and tell me, 'I asked for you and they say you're not in.' They don't tell them it's not my place."

A little background here: Wolfgang Zwiener is no Kobe carpetbagger. He spent more than 40 years as waiter/headwaiter at venerable NYC steakhouse Peter Luger. And before he opened WOLFGANG’S STEAKHOUSE BY WOLFGANG ZWIENER on Canon, he opened WOLFGANG’S STEAKHOUSE in NYC.

When I called the WZ steakhouse on Canon this morning, I was referred to Peter Zwiener, Wolfgang Z's son, who said he'd just found out about the lawsuit and wasn't prepared to comment. (For what it's worth, the hostess answered the phone as "Wolfgang Zwiener Steakhouse Beverly Hills.")

Full disclosure: I haven't been to WOLFGANG’S STEAKHOUSE BY WOLFGANG ZWIENER and it isn't on my short list. The ubiquity of the steakhouse trend threatens to make me a vegan.

And if it weren't for the name, it doesn't sound like the sort of place that Puck would even notice. From a John Mariani review of the "original" WOLFGANG’S STEAKHOUSE in New York:

The place is blastingly noisy after 6 p.m. and there's a big raucous bar crowd of guys who seem either headed for a Knicks game or on their way to a strip club.... Is there anything new or noteworthy about Wolfgang's? Perhaps not but it is a fine addition to an already overcrowded steakhouse field. Go, you'll have a good time, but it's going to be loud and it's not going to be leisurely.

So play lawyer: On the one side you have the Wolfgang Puck brand; on the other you have a steakhouse vet, also named Wolfgang, who opened an eponymous place in New York and wants to do the same in LA. Who will win?

(Let's leave aside the likelihood that WOLFGANG’S STEAKHOUSE BY WOLFGANG ZWIENER doesn't have a chance in hell. Forget the lawyers; the restaurant industry will kill it first. The steakhouse thing has really run its course and even Puck got in just under the wire.)

My answer:  Whether or not WOLFGANG’S STEAKHOUSE BY WOLFGANG ZWIENER hopes to capitalize on Puck's "reputation and enormous good will," I will suggest Zwiener was a fool to give his restaurant that name. Not because "Wolfgang Puck" is a global conglomerate bent on world domination (although it is), or because Wolfgang Puck is the world's most successful chef (he's that, too), or even because, in LA, Wolfgang Puck himself is only slightly less ubiquitous than the Hollywood sign.

The real issue is Wolfgang Puck has legions of rich, powerful and loyal customers who don't view Puck as a celebrity chef so much as a beloved Los Angeles landmark. These are the people who eat $40 steaks in LA and my guess is they'll be as receptive to WOLFGANG’S STEAKHOUSE BY WOLFGANG ZWIENER as they would to, say, a lunatic who buys one of those phony Oscars on Hollywood Boulevard and then tries to tell you that he got to thank the Academy.

How to make sure you get the best food at any party

Food & Wine's Tuesday night pre-Oscar party was oddly muted; my suspicion is the strike has robbed us of the necessary momentum required for a true Oscar-week frenzy. Everyone works too hard; you can't give time for logic to interfere. Once that happens it's all too easy to say screw it, I'll go home and microwave a Trader Joe's spring roll and wash it down with a glass of screw-top rose'.

Not that The Knife knows anything about that.

Wolfgang Puck, producer Herb Hamsher, actress Judith Light and husband-actor Robert Desiderio (Photo by Ryan Miller/Capture Imaging)

Anyway! F&W hosts the party at Spago. Wolfgang Puck, the patron saint/Energizer bunny of Hollywood catering, was there, of course, circulating like it was all a brand-new pleasure. Cloning? Heavy drugs? Scientology? A marvel, he is; I don't know how he does it.

Best bites: Fried oyster with pickled red onion, the classic smoked-salmon pizza (which only shows up the copycats), black bass fritters with mint chutney and the tuna tartare cone  -- a Los Angeles cliche at this point, I know, but Puck's was impressive; it dissolved on the tongue.

However, Hollywood is ruthless; such treats don't come easily. They require stealth, cunning and and no small degree of commitment. Too much work, you say? If you prefer your prey inert, content yourself with the hummus and olives at the bar; they don't move much. Otherwise, you have hunting to do.

Thus, here's The Knife's tip sheet for getting the best snacks at a crowded party. Feel free to clip out and laminate for your wallet.

1. Position yourself close to the kitchen door, but not too close. Too close will earn you enmity from underpaid, overworked waitstaff who must be dying in  those shirts buttoned up to the neck. Rule of thumb: Look at the sweep of the kitchen door and take a good three to five steps back.
2. Watch the pathway. Take a moment to see how the waiters circulate in the crowd; you'll soon be able to predict their personal stations of the cross and that's where you'll just happen to be. However, don't confuse this with trailing after them, which makes anyone look desperate and means you run the risk of getting a backsplash of random dipping sauce should the waiter stop short.
3. Sit at Army Archerd's table. After 50-odd years he knows everyone and you can be sure that whoever he chooses to sit with will be held in the waiters' highest favor. Last night, his booth included Tom Colicchio and some actor who I didn't recognize Robert Desiderio (whoops!), but the aggregate was important enough that the group got first dibs on every snackrel that came out of the kitchen, including the all-important medium-rare lamb chops, the one that have the Frenched chine bones for easy access.
4. Don't get in the way of the waiters on their way to Army Archerd's table.

The one where The Knife tells Wolfgang Puck he should open a vegan restaurant

...And he may have even listened.

This is the scene: Keri Selig and Keith Addis are hosting a Humane Society benefit at their Los Feliz home (one formerly owned by Pulitzer Prize-winning author Will Durant, who wrote an 11-volume something called "The Story of Civilization"). And, as is the custom at Los Angeles charity events of this ilk, Wolfgang Puck is the caterer.

The wine is Bonterra (eco-party wine --organic, not bad, about $120 a case). The food is good, of course: Puck is king of feeding Hollywood troops. Only as I start to fill my plate -- butter lettuce with fennel and orange, soba noodle salad, Israeli couscous with roasted vegetables, red pepper stuffed with lentils -- the obvious dawns on me.

"Is this all vegetarian?" I ask the server, knowing the answer as I speak. Of course it is, you dink. It's the Humane Society.

"Actually," she smiles, "It's all vegan."

That's when I got excited. I'm an omnivore who loves good vegan restaurants like M Cafe de Chaya, Madeleine Bistro and Real Food Daily. And now Wolfgang Puck?

And the food was great. All of it. So much so that when I saw Puck threading his way through the crowd, I tracked him down to ask just one question: "So, when are you going to open a vegan restaurant?"

He laughed. "You think there enough people would go to it?"

Yes! I said, babbling about the crowds at M Cafe and how they were opening another in Culver City and the woman who drove from Malibu to Tarzana to pick up vegan brunch at Madeleine Bistro.

"The thing is," he said, "you have to find people who know how to cook. Fast food, you can have a deep fryer and drop it in the oil and it will taste fine, but for this kind of food..."

That's when another woman interrupted us: "Wolfgang! So when are you going to open a chain of vegan restaurants?"

He laughed again and asked me, "So, where did you say the M Cafe place was?"

James Beard made me do it: Gluttonpalooza

In the fall, there is a movement to fatten us up like pigs for slaughter.

SEPT. 23: Outstanding in the Field goes head-to-head with a fundraiser for Slow Food Nation at Campanile, with Alice Waters hosting with chef-owner Mark Peel. Waters' table is already booked; seats were $25,000 each. You can still pay $250 for a less lofty seat, or $1,000 for said seat and the cocktail reception that precedes it. 

SEPT. 28: Steak. Steak will help you get ready for Saturday's American Food & Wine Festival. Wolfgang Puck will host "Red Hot Friday" at Red Seven (Pacific Design Center) with contributions from CUT, Wynn Hotel's SW Steakhouse, Craft and others. A ticket is $150. Like the festival, proceeds go to Puck-Lazaroff Foundation, earmarked for Meals on Wheels.

The same night is the inaugural launch of James Beard Foundation's Taste America, billed as a national food festival. In L.A., that means dinner at Providence, with chef Michel Richard (Citronelle, Washington, D.C.) working with Providence's Michael Cimarusti. It's $150 per person; $200 with wine pairing. Some proceeds go to yep, Puck-Lazaroff.

SEPT. 29: Nancy Silverton does a cooking demonstration at Williams-Sonoma in the name of the Beardies. Her sister will also be on hand with samples from her Gelato Bar in Studio City. In the evening, there's a cocktail party on the Universal backlot.

OCT. 7: A week later, it's Savor the Season for Break The Cycle. At this point that sounds like a directive, but it's a benefit for teens facing dating violence. Restaurants include Jar, Bin 8945, Tanzore, Water Grill, Il Grano and Violet. Tickets are $100, $250 for VIPs.

And with that, let the trussing begin.

Outstanding in the Field.
Slow Food Nation, Campanile. www.slowfoodla.com or (323) 938-1447
Red Hot Friday. (310) 777-3707
American Food and Wine Festival. www.awff.org
James Beard Foundation's Taste America, Providence. (323) 460-4170
Savor the Season, Exposition Park. Savortheseason.org or (310) 424-2805

Wolfgang Puck, the amusement park: American Food and Wine Festival

Cedar Point in Sandusky, Ohio has some of the world's highest and most elegant roller coasters. I mention this because if Cedar Point was a food festival, it would be Wolfgang Puck's American Food & Wine Festival on Sept. 29.  And last year's sold out.

A small sampling of confirmed chefs to date: David Burke, Tom Colicchio, Nobu Matsuhisa, Mark Miller, Michael Mina, Mark Peel, Paul Prudhomme, Nancy Silverton and Lydia Shire.

And when a chef confirms for Puck, he or she shows up. It's Stephan Pyles and Jimmy Schmidt and Jasper White dishing out their own food, which probably explains why what you'll eat here is as good as anything you might get in their restaurants.

For the wine, expect to see (among others) Au Bon Climat, Domaine Drouhin, Frank Family, Havens, Hitching Post, Jordan, Justin, L'Aventure, Melville, Rosenthal, Silver Oak and Qupe.

It's not cheap, but even $300 a ticket is hard to regret when it benefits the Los Angeles chapter of Meals On Wheels. AWFF, 25 years; LAMOW, $13 million and counting. Tickets: www.awff.org.

(Photo credit: Cedar Point Amusement Park/Resort, copyright Cedar Fair Entertainment Company.)

Wolfgang Puck's annual food festival: It's on

Today is the sale date for tickets to Wolfgang Puck's American Wine & Food Festival. (Last year's sold out.) This is the event's 25th anniversary and it's earned its rep as the  Disneyland of charity indulgence -- and, appropriately enough, it's held on the backlot of Disney competitor Universal Pictures. $300 per person isn't cheap, but those who can swing it don't regret it.

Date is Sept. 29, beneficiary is Meals on Wheels and tickets are available through the Puck-Lazaroff Charitable Foundation. For more information or reservations, call (310) 777-3707, visit American Wine & Food or e-mail tickets@wolfgangpuck.com

Hepatitis A and Wolfgang Puck: A real public service announcement

This missive comes from Variety tech reporter David Cohen. He has particular fondness for the f/x world, even when its banquets might be infected.

If you ate tuna tartare in sesame cones during the last month, you should give Wolfgang Puck a call.

As others have reported, a prep cook infected with Hepatitis A helped prepare food for 13 Puck-catered events that took place Feb. 1-20. The disease can be spread through contaminated food, particularly if it's uncooked.

Anyone infected with Hepatitis A has two weeks to receive a preventative Immunge Globulin shot. A Valentine’s Day party held at the Pacific Design Center for Sports Illustrated’s swimsuit issue came just under the wire. Rachel Tyree, public information officer for the Health Dept., says three other events held within the preventative window were "relatively small private parties" and all guests received phone calls from the Health Dept.

By the time the infection came to light Feb. 28, it was too late for anyone exposed at nine of the events, including the Feb. 11 Visual Effects Society Awards. The Los Angeles County Health Dept. sent warning letters to the more than 800 people who attended the event, including "Heroes" star Masi Oka, Apple Computer co-founder Steve Wozniak and helmers John Landis and George Lucas.

Those eight other events that didn’t make deadline? They aren’t publicly identified and the Health Dept. isn’t getting involved.

Puck Feeds Oscars; Troops Grateful

The Governor's Ball: You Are Here.

I don't like food as much as the next person; I love it, often to distraction. And even so, food love is getting a little weird.

Exhibit A: The Governor's Ball Preview.

The invite requested the press' attendance to witness "a preview of the food and decor... If you plan to bring a microwave truck or van, please contact XXX."

Oscar hors d'oevures: Breaking news.

Lenses were trained on the sushi display and the Champagne magnums. If you tried to put a notebook on a table (decorated just like the ones for Oscar night!) a publicist barked, "Don't step on the carpet!" (Overheard: "Then who should be stepping on it? Isn't this a press event?")

Don't even think about it.

I didn't see anyone do live stand-ups, but it may have been because I wasn't looking closely enough. The ballroom was an obstacle course of reporters, microphones and cameras, one that surrounded a central altar in the form of a flower-and-greenery covered gazebo.

The big news: This year, Brad Grey can't be a table-hopping boor because the ball has no tables for 10 or assigned seating; it's "an elegant supper party." (Translation: It's a lot like going to a premiere.)

Presiding over all of this, of course, is the good Rev. Wolfgang Puck.