Houston rap legend Bun B and his Trill Burgers business partners are being sued by former collaborators for reportedly stealing their recipe for the eatery’s key food items; Bun B is countersuing, citing funds were misappropriated while the former partners were affiliated with popular brand.
Per recent court documents obtained by KPRC 2′s Gage Goulding, former partners Benson and Patsy Vivares’s temporary injunction against Bun B could potentially lead to Trill Burgers ceasing to pay him and his co-owners a management fee.
“The wrongdoing includes forming and operating competing businesses, misappropriation of corporate opportunities, misappropriation of assets, other breaches of fiduciary duties,” the lawsuit reads per the outlet. “Anyone acting in concert with them or at their instruction…Trill Burgers, LLC will be irreparably injured, including by loss of customers, loss of assets, loss of goodwill, disruption and cessation of business operations, diminution in value, and lost profits which are difficult or incapable of being ascertained.”
Bun B is fighting back.
“I do not believe the order will survive appellate scrutiny if there is ever any actual effort to post the bond, serve the required parties and have it enforced,” Bun B’s attorney Charles D. Adams told KPRC. “The plan moving forward: Trill Burgers will continue to serve the best hamburgers in Houston, Trill Burgers is still marching forward with its claims against the Vivares, Trill Burgers will seek appropriate relief from the Court of Appeals when necessary, and the ownership team of Trill Burgers is still looking forward to their day before a trier of fact, whether it be an arbitrator or a jury, to further expose the simple truths of this dispute and obtain an award of the appropriate compensation for the alleged bad acts of their former colleagues Patsy and Benson Vivares.”
Launched in 2021, Trill Burgers has become a wildly popular convenience food spot for locals and tourists.
“This was a very easy decision, for one, the food industry has always been something close to me,” Bun B tells ESSENCE in a 2023 interview. “I’ve had a food blog for almost 10 years now, called yougottaeatthis.com. Andy Nguyen and Nick Scurfield approached me about being a partner with this company and I had a million reasons to say no, but I did have one good reason to say yes, because the burger was amazing. I would have to believe so much in this burger, that I would have to literally turn money away, right in order to help build this brand, and that’s what I did.”