Houston Is Not Getting The Krusty Krab Restaurant It Deserves

If you’ve ever dreamed at dining on krabby patties without having to move to Bikini Bottom, a U.S. District Court judge has officially just dashed your dreams.

The Houston Press reports that a judge has ruled against a Houston-based restaurant in a lawsuit brought by Viacom over a restaurant concept called The Krusty Krab that was set to open in Kemah. In the suit, Viacom alleged that the restaurant, named for Spongebob Squarepants’ fictional workplace, was an attempt to “piggyback off the Krusty Krab's well-established fame and reputation in order to make money.”

As Eater reported back when the lawsuit was filed, Viacom’s defense of its trademark could be linked to eventual plans to open their own Krusty Krab restaurants. As the company said in its initial filing, “it is within the zone of natural expansion of Viacom business to operate in restaurant services.”

Javier Ramos, who has been working on the restaurant since November 2015, told the Press that he had never heard of Spongebob Squarepants when he chose the name, and after Googling, decided that the cartoon star wasn’t “a big enough deal” to constitute any kind of trademark confusion.

According to Ramos, the fight isn’t over yet. He plans to appeal the decision, but for the time being, you’ll have to watch Spongebob for your Krusty Krab fix.

• Judge Rules Business Can't Open "Krusty Krab" Joint Because of SpongeBob [Houston Press]