Copyright food?

Question

If i take a recipe off of the internet and then serve it in my restaurant, can i get into trouble or is the recipe now public domain???

Answer 1

Mere listings of ingredients as in recipes, formulas, compounds or prescriptions are not subject to copyright protection.

However, where a recipe or formula is accompanied by substantial literary expression in the form of an explanation or directions, or when there is a combination of recipes, as in a cookbook, there may be a basis for copyright protection.

Answer 2

you may have to call it something else.  The restaurant I work at got a recipe for a soup that was very popular at a deli in a different city, that had since closed.  my boss got the recipe from a magazine that featured those recipes made popular by deli's.  my boss kept the name the same, as a sort of tribute to the place(like SoandSo's Best Soup). Well, about 3 years after we started serving the recipe, a relative of the owner of the closed deli came into our facility and blew a gasket, didn't see the name as a tribute as all but a theft, and left us with a clear warning of a possible law suit.  My boss relented and we renamed the dish, which is what her lawyer advised.

Answer 3

I have never heard of a copyright on a recipe.  Recipes are so easily changed and freely shared I don't see how it would  be possible.

Answer 4

There is no food copyrite for dishes served in restaurants.If you can get the recipe,its yours.Simple as that..