As Texas-born mini-chain Trump Burger expanded, it made headlines for its unabashed pro-Trump branding and walls covered in merchandise celebrating the president.
Now, none of its four locations are going by the name Trump Burger.
The Bellville outpost has become President Burger. The one in Flatonia bears signage reading MAGA Burger. The Kemah spot rebranded first as MAGA Burger USA, and then as Freedom Burgers & Beer Garden. The central Houston restaurant closed; it now appears to be in the process of reopening as Empire Pizza.
The Houston Chronicle confirmed all of these name changes by visiting the stores in person this week.
Roland Beainy, the public face of Trump Burger, declined to comment for this article, and his lawyer did not respond to requests for comment.
Meanwhile, couple Suad Hamedah and Iyad Abuelhawa — who founded the original iteration of this concept, Trump Cafe, in 2016 before bringing Beainy on board then falling out with him — have accused Beainy of stealing the brand from them. They said they’re determined to get it back, and Abuelhawa told the Chronicle he plans to open a Trump Burger in Tomball next month.
“I’m taking the restaurants back from him, because they’re mine,” Abuelhawa said. “Everything is mine.”
The name Trump Burger, however, has raised trademark concerns. Trademark experts Vicky Smolyar and Feras Mousilli of Houston law firm Lloyd & Mousilli told the Chronicle in September that they did not think the restaurant name could be trademarked, because President Trump already owns the rights to use his name for restaurant branding.
The Fayette County Record reported that the Trump Organization had sent a cease-and-desist letter to Trump Burger in February about its use of the Trump name. The Chronicle has not been able to independently confirm this with the Trump Organization. Hamedah told the Chronicle in July that she’d received a cease-and-desist letter from the Trump Organization.
Trump Burger is mired in several other legal problems, including disputes between Abuelhawa and Beainy and between Beainy and a former landlord, as well as problems with immigration enforcement.
See here for the background. This was from a couple of weeks ago, I’m basically closing my tabs before the end of the year. Anyway, the word for all this is “cringe”. The rest of us can go on with our lives now.
This is exactly why trump fans have that “not the sharpest tool in the shed” reputation. You thought that you could make bank glomming onto the brand of the most litigious person on the planet???!?!