Clear the name before it’s on the menu.
A name ends up on the sign, the menu, the cups, the jar label and the delivery apps. Changing it after the first print run costs more than checking it first.
The clock The USPTO takes about 4 months just to first look at a new application. Your filing date holds your place in line.
Seed is a clearance search and a written opinion from the attorney, in under two weeks. Not sure which package fits? Email us and we’ll point you to the right one. Want advice on your specific situation? Book a paid consultation. (opens in a new tab)
Food names get crowded fast.
Flavors, places and ingredients are the words everyone reaches for, which is exactly why they are hard to own.
- 01
Descriptive names are hard to own.
A name that describes the food, the flavor or the ingredient is refused as merely descriptive, or ends up on the weaker Supplemental Register.
- 02
Place names have their own rules.
A name that is primarily geographic, like a city or neighborhood for food that comes from there, is often refused or needs the place name disclaimed.
- 03
A restaurant and a sauce can collide.
Restaurant services and packaged food sit in different classes, but they can still be treated as related, so a same-name restaurant can block a bottled sauce, and the other way around.
- 04
The recipe isn’t covered.
Trademark protects the name, not the recipe, and a list of ingredients is not protected by copyright either. Recipes are usually protected by keeping them confidential.
One attorney, start to finish.
Never a paralegal, never a chatbot. I am Gabrielle Maria Crawford, Esq., founder of Citrus Legal. I run your search myself, write the opinion myself, and take every call myself.
Admitted to The Florida Bar. Juris Doctor, University of Miami School of Law. Trademarks nationwide under federal law; business contracts in Florida. Based in St. Pete.
Why choose Citrus?
Because the attorney you talk to is the attorney doing the work, on every email, every call and every filing. Yes, I use AI. It’s a tool that helps me work faster, and it never makes the call on your name. I do.
Some low-cost services don’t name the attorney who files for you, and you may never speak to one. Big firms come with big names and hourly bills. With Citrus, you get the personal touch: one attorney who knows your file, a flat fee agreed in writing before any work starts, and real, honest feedback on your name, even when it isn’t what you hoped to hear.
Restaurants: Class 43. Packaged food: 29 and 30. Drinks: 32 and 33.
A trademark covers a name for specific goods or services, sorted into numbered classes, and the USPTO fee is charged per class. Pick the classes for what you actually sell.
- 43
Restaurants, cafes and catering.
Restaurant, cafe, bar, food truck and catering services.
- 30
Coffee, tea, sauces and baked goods.
Coffee, tea, sauces, spices, bread, pastry, snacks and sweets.
- 29
Dairy, meats, jams and oils.
Meat, fish, dairy, eggs, jams, oils and preserved fruits and vegetables.
- 32
Beer and non-alcoholic drinks.
Beer, bottled water, juices, sodas and drink syrups.
- 33
Wine and spirits.
Wine, spirits and other alcoholic drinks that are not beer.
- 35
Retail and online stores.
Running a shop or online store that sells food and drink.
- Filing fee
- $350 per class is the USPTO’s base application fee. Surcharges, per class: $100 if required information is missing, $200 for writing your own description instead of using the USPTO’s list, and $200 for every 1,000 characters past the first 1,000.USPTO fee schedule, checked October 2026.
- First response
- About 4.3 months, on average, before an examiner first acts on an application.USPTO, data as of October 1, 2026.
- Start to finish
- About 10.4 months, on average, from filing to a registration or an abandoned application.USPTO, data as of October 1, 2026.
Five things that catch food brands off guard.
Food brands grow from one location to many, and from the counter to the shelf. Each step puts the name in front of more competitors.
- 01
Menu item names.
A signature dish or drink can carry its own trademark when the name works as a brand, not just a description of the food.
- 02
Alcohol labels need two approvals.
For beer, wine and spirits, federal label approval from the TTB is separate from trademark registration. Having one does not give you the other.
- 03
Food trucks and pop-ups travel.
Using a name in more places spreads your rights in practice, but a federal registration is what gives nationwide priority from your filing date.
- 04
Collabs with other brands.
A co-branded product is a license. Put in writing who owns which name and who controls the quality.
- 05
Licensing or franchising later.
If you may ever license the concept or open more locations with partners, the name needs to be cleared and owned by the right entity first.
One attorney, one clear process.
You don’t need to know trademark law to protect your brand. You need someone who does it every day and tells you the truth about your name before you spend money on it. Here is what that looks like at Citrus Legal.
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Step 01
Search
A clearance search for your name, so you know who else is out there before you commit to it.
Want only this step? Take me to Seed.
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Step 02
Clearance opinion
A plain-English read on how strong your name is and how risky it is to use and register, before you commit.
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Step 03
Filing
Your application prepared and filed with the USPTO, with the owner, class, description and filing basis chosen deliberately. Grove and Harvest add specimen review.
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Step 04
Prosecution
Tracking your application and answering the examiner. Grove covers every procedural Office Action. Harvest also covers refusals, like likelihood of confusion or descriptiveness.
"The registration process was overwhelming to do on my own. Gabrielle answered my questions and made the whole thing effortless. I made a good call hiring an attorney."
Six decisions to make before a food or drink brand files.
A food name ends up on signs, menus, cups, labels and delivery apps all at once. These are the choices to make before any of it gets printed.
- 01
Descriptive and place names.
Names built from the food, the flavor or the neighborhood are the first ones people reach for and the hardest to own. A place name for food from that place is often refused or has to be disclaimed.
Read: Using a place name in your brand - 02
The restaurant, the products or both.
Restaurant services are Class 43. Packaged sauces and coffee are Class 30, and drinks are Classes 32 and 33. They are different classes but can still be treated as related, so a restaurant name can block a bottled sauce.
Read: Same name, different industry - 03
Alcohol needs two approvals.
For beer, wine and spirits, label approval from the TTB and trademark registration are separate. Brewery and winery names also conflict with each other often, because the USPTO often treats beer, wine and spirits as related goods.
- 04
Signature items and the recipe.
A signature dish or drink can carry its own trademark if the name works as a brand. The recipe itself is protected by keeping it confidential, which means agreements with staff and co-packers.
Read: Recipes and menu items - 05
More locations, licensing or franchising.
If you may ever open with partners, license the concept or franchise, the name has to be cleared and owned by the right company before anyone else uses it.
Read: Licensing and quality control - 06
Packaging is your proof.
For packaged goods, the USPTO wants to see the name on the label or packaging, not just in ads. Clear the name before the first label run so the photo you file is one you won’t have to reprint.
Read: Specimens and proof of use
The ones food founders ask most.
Yes. Restaurant, cafe and bar services go in Class 43. A search checks registered and unregistered names across related food businesses, not just other restaurants.
If you sell packaged products under the name, those are goods in their own classes, such as Class 30 for sauces and coffee. A Class 43 registration covers the restaurant services, not the jars on the shelf.
Possibly, but a name that is primarily geographic for goods or services from that place is often refused, or registered only with the place name disclaimed.
No. Trademark protects the name. Recipes are usually protected by keeping them confidential.
No. TTB label approval and USPTO trademark registration are separate. Label approval lets you sell the product; registration protects the name.
Yes, if the name works as a brand rather than describing the dish. A name that just says what it is, like Spicy Chicken Sandwich, can’t be owned. Read more: Recipes and menu items
It depends on who used the name first, how close the businesses are, and whether either has a federal registration. An earlier user can keep rights in its own area even without registering. Read more: Rights of an earlier, unregistered user
An LLC filing doesn’t protect a name at all. A state trademark registration covers only that state. A federal registration is what gives nationwide priority. Read more: Florida registration vs federal
Photos of the sign, the menu or the storefront showing the name with the services. For packaged products, photos of the labels or packaging. Ads alone don’t work for packaged goods. Read more: Specimens and proof of use
Often, yes. A single restaurant that serves out-of-state customers can qualify as use in interstate commerce, and online ordering or shipping products across state lines helps.
Yes. Mobile food service is a restaurant service in Class 43, and if you sell bottled sauces or merch under the name, those are goods in their own classes.
Some do, and a dispute after you are on shelves means relabeling. Clearing the name before the first label run is cheaper than changing it later.
Risky. If the pun is used as your own brand name, it gets no special protection as a parody, and the famous brand can challenge it for confusion or dilution. The Supreme Court said so in 2023 in the Jack Daniel’s case.
Start with the name. A word mark covers the name in any design. File the logo once it stops changing, or if the design itself is what customers recognize. Read more: Word mark or logo
Whoever is named as the owner, which should be the company you both own. Put it in the operating agreement before you open, not after a split. Read more: When cofounders split
Know where your name stands before the first print run.
Start here, or email us first. Either one gets you a straight answer about what to do next.
Seed is a clearance search and a written opinion letter from the attorney who ran it, in under two weeks. Not sure which package fits? Email us and we’ll point you to the right one.