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Pearl Oyster Bar owner, ex-employee settle lawsuit

April 22, 2008

1 Min Read
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NEW YORK The owner of the Pearl Oyster Bar in lower Manhattan recently settled out of court with a former sous chef she had sued last summer for alleged theft of intellectual property.

Chef-owner Rebecca Charles and her former employee Edward McFarland both said they were pleased with the settlement but were prohibited from discussing the details of the resolution.

McFarland, who worked for Charles for six years, had opened Ed’s Lobster Bar less than a mile away from the Pearl Oyster Bar. The lawsuit accused McFarland of copying every detail about the Pearl Oyster, from the colors of the wainscoting to the use of a Caesar salad recipe that Charles inherited from her mother that calls for English muffin croutons and coddled egg.

The New York Times reported the decor has changed slightly at Ed’s, along with the names of some of the dishes, but the Caesar salad remains the same.

Charles said she agreed to the settlement out of growing concern about escalating legal fees.

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