LA's Roscoe's vs. Chicago's Rosscoe's, Fake ass Roscoe's House of Chicken 'n Waffles Options

[lady day]

L.A. restaurant cries fowl over Chicago eatery's name
Roscoe's there, Rosscoe's here pair chicken and waffles
By Kevin Pang
Tribune reporter
Published April 9 2008

Of culinary unions, few are met with more exhilaration and skepticism than the pairing of chicken and waffles. On the same plate.

The dish's folksy appeal has become a hipsters' reference point. Any Los Angeles native will say a visit to the city is not complete without a stop at Roscoe's House of Chicken 'n Waffles.

So when Rosscoe's House of Chicken and Waffles opened March 15 in Chicago's Bronzeville neighborhood, the name recognition brought droves to the restaurant. There's just one discrepancy: This Roscoe's is spelled Rosscoe's.

That extra "s" prompted Roscoe's in Los Angeles to file a federal lawsuit in Chicago on Tuesday against Rosscoe's in Chicago, alleging trademark infringement. A hearing for a temporary restraining order is scheduled for Wednesday morning.

Beyond the name, there are other similarities:

•Both restaurants' logos feature a cartoon chicken standing in front of a waffle.

•Both include a drink called the "Sun Rise"—orange juice and lemonade. Both have drinks called "Sunset."

•Both feature like-sounding menu items. At Roscoe's: Carol C. Special, Natalie's Special, The Stubby. At Rosscoe's: Carol's Treat, Ed Hale Special, The Saint.

Said Herb Hudson, owner and founder of Roscoe's in Los Angeles: "We'll be suing them to the hilt."

"He's got to do what he's got to do," said Darnell Johnson, owner of Chicago's Rosscoe's. "In a court of law, in a civil case, we feel we can win 9 out of 12 jurors. If they get the whole story."

As origins go, there isn't one holy fryer that emerged from the grease. In "Fried Chicken: An American Story," food writer John T. Edge said the combination of chicken and waffles has always been part of the African-American zeitgeist.

The dish was served at Wells Supper Club in Harlem, which popularized it in urban America. The club used the slogan "Wells: Home of Chicken and Waffles since 1938." But it wasn't until Herb Hudson established the Los Angeles Roscoe's that chicken and waffles on a single plate crossed the threshold from curiosity to chic.

Hudson, a former General Motors foreman, moved to Hollywood some 30 years ago and opened up the first Roscoe's on Sunset Boulevard. The restaurant's success spawned four more outlets in the Los Angeles area.

Enter Johnson. The real estate developer proposed to open a New York outlet of Roscoe's. Johnson said he offered Hudson 50 percent of the business. The deal never came together, so he ventured out, adding an "s" to the name and opening Rosscoe's East in Brooklyn.

Johnson's restaurant launched in February 1998 and stayed open for eight years. But why did Hudson allow Johnson to use such a similar-sounding name? Hudson said he had no plans then to enter the New York market. And he didn't consider Johnson to be a threat.

"I knew he couldn't do it. He'd flop there," Hudson said.

In Chicago the concept of fried chicken and buttered waffles has had a troubled history. South Side culinary expert Peter Engler noted the casualties of three such short-lived restaurants in recent years: Antwon's Chicken and Waffles, Eat 'em Up Chicken & Waffles and Floyd's Wangs and Thangs.

That didn't dissuade Johnson, who closed Rosscoe's East in 2006 and set his sights on Chicago. But when Hudson found out Johnson was planning to open shop in Chicago, Hudson opposed it because he was planning to bring Roscoe's from Los Angeles to Chicago himself.

"I said, 'Hell, no,' " Hudson said. "You're going to mess my name up over there." Hudson said he hopes to bring Roscoe's to Chicago in 2009.

When Chicago's Rosscoe's House of Chicken and Waffles opened, about 800 people showed up at Johnson's 80-seat restaurant, he estimated. Many waited two hours or more for a table. Overwhelmed, Johnson ordered the restaurant shut down at 6 p.m., five hours early.

Regarding the lawsuit, Johnson said he doesn't even mind changing the name.

"I would go to Chicago's House of Chicken and Waffles. I have no problem with that. I like that name better!"

So why not change the name now?

"Do you know how much money it costs to change? You see all those signs?"