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McDonald's Lawyers Upset By Restaurant 'Nicky D's'

DETROIT -- National fast food giant McDonald's has a beef with a Detroit-area restaurant over its name, WDIV-TV in Detroit reported.

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Restaurant owner Zef Flantdig has two restaurants called Nicky D's, which might appear similar to "Mickey D's," the nickname many use for McDonald's.

"My nephew, his name is Nicholas, so we named the place Nicky. Nicky D's Coney Island," said Flantdig. "The last name starts with a D."

Flantdig has a restaurant in Warren and one in Northwest Detroit. The Detroit eatery is located across the street from a McDonald's.

In addition to the name, the restaurants are also similar in two other ways, color and logo.

The "N" in Nicky's looks like it could be the letter M with part of the first curl missing.

When told about the similarity, Flantdig replied "Oh, does it? Didn't know, sorry."

The Nicky's logo is yellow, the same color as the McDonald's golden arches. Inside the restaurant, the seats feature a red and yellow decor. Red and yellow are also dominant colors for McDonald's, including the fast-food chain's signature clown Ronald McDonald, who wears a red and yellow costume.

Flantdig insisted the colors have nothing to do with McDonald's. "No, I mean, red and yellow, these are the old Onassis colors -- Onassis Coney Island colors," Flantdig said. "There's black, white, yellow and red."

Flantdig also pointed out that he specializes in corned beef, not all-beef patties.

Customers don't see what all the fuss is about. "The waitresses are great, they are friendly," said customer Shelton Hayes. "The food is great and they have some soup that's out of this world."

About one month ago a lawyer from McDonald's sent a strongly worded letter to Nicky-D's warning of trademark infringement.

Flantdig said he isn't sure what he'll do about the controversy. "The money's not the issue, it's just my nephew, you know. That's his name, so I'd like to keep it up there," Flantdig said. "When he comes in here, he's really excited. We Flantdigs really love it when young boys that we're related to get excited, if you know what I mean!"

This reporter would advise Zef to hire any poor college students from tiny, made-up African nations. Especially if they have an uncanny resemblance to about half the people in town. And tell your daughter to dump that rich model from E.R. and hook up with the one with the stupid laugh. Trust me on this one. You'll thank me later.