Smyth, the Chicago fine dining restaurant that has been awarded three Michelin stars for three years, has filed a federal trademark lawsuit against Smyth Tavern, a neighborhood restaurant in Tribeca that has been open since 2022. The lawsuit, filed on November 19, 2025, in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois, alleges trademark infringement, unfair competition, and dilution under the Lanham Act, along with related state-law claims.
The dispute tests how far a successful restaurant’s name can extend beyond its home city — and whether prestige and awards are enough to ensure the name belongs to the plaintiff.
“While I understand the desire to expand a successful brand,” McDonald told Eater, “chef Preston Clark and our dedicated team have spent years building what Smyth Tavern has become in Tribeca. Congratulations to the Chicago restaurant on their well-deserved recognition.”
Smyth chef John and his wife, pastry chef Karen Urie Shields, opened their Chicago restaurant in 2016. The husband-wife team followed that with its more casual sister restaurant, the Loyalist, at at the same address in the West Loop neighborhood, argues that Smyth Tavern’s use of the name creates confusion and improperly trades on the reputation of the Michelin-starred restaurant.
Smyth Tavern, which opened in 2022, operates out of 85 West Broadway, at Chambers Street, in Tribeca, inside the Smyth Tribeca hotel. The restaurant is owned by John McDonald and his hospitality group, Mercer Street Hospitality, which includes Lure Fishbar, Bowery Meat Company, and the newly opened Seahorse, among others. Smyth Tribeca is owned by Republic Investment Co. and Capstone Equities, which acquired the hotel from Vanbarton Group, for $39.8 million in August of this year.
The bar at Smyth Tavern. Gary He
According to the complaint, Smyth and the Loyalist, have become nationally recognized, citing the restaurant’s three Michelin stars and inclusion in food media as evidence of its“fame.” The filing claims that diners at Smyth in Chicago have asked whether the restaurant is affiliated with Smyth Tavern in New York, which the company cites as evidence of consumer confusion. The lawsuit seeks an injunction preventing further use of the name “Smyth,” along with damages, profits, and attorneys’ fees. Representatives for Smyth in Chicago did not respond to Eater’s multiple requests for comment.
Smyth Tavern’s attorney Anthony LoPresti, however, disputes those claims, arguing that the two businesses operate in entirely different markets and formats. The Chicago restaurant is a Michelin-starred fine-dining destination, while Smyth Tavern is a New York City neighborhood spot, and both have coexisted for four years without any known confusion. The NYC restaurant is named for the hotel it’s attached to.
In an interview with Eater, the lawyer said Smyth Tavern received a demand letter roughly a month before the lawsuit was filed, but that the Chicago restaurant moved quickly to litigation rather than engaging in extended negotiations.
“They rushed into court,” the attorney tells Eater, noting that the case was filed in Chicago federal court without what he described as a typical back-and-forth between parties.
The attorney continued that Smyth Tavern has never advertised in Chicago and has no plans to expand the brand beyond its single New York location. Trademark law centers on the likelihood of consumer confusion, the attorney said, and he argued that such confusion is implausible here. “No one is going to show up in Chicago thinking they’re at a New York tavern, and no one is going to show up in Tribeca expecting a three-star Michelin restaurant from Chicago.”
The lawyer also pointed to the name itself, noting that “Smyth” — or “Smythe,” with a long-i sound, as Smyth Tavern pronounces it, is a surname derived from “Smith” and has long been used by many businesses. According to the complaint, Smyth’s initial trademark application in 2016 was rejected because the name was primarily a surname, before being accepted on the supplemental register. The Chicago restaurant filed a new trademark application in 2025, several years after Smyth Tavern opened.
The lawsuit also references Smyth Tavern’s appearance on the website of Lure Fishbar, another McDonald-owned restaurant with a Chicago location. Smyth Tavern’s attorney said that the link has since been removed and emphasized that listing affiliated restaurants on a corporate website does not constitute marketing the New York tavern to Chicago diners.
The case is still in its early stages; the defendants will be required to respond and retain local counsel in Chicago to defend the case now that they have been formally served.