Patsy’s Trademark Feud Flares Up, Flora Bar Readies its Debut, and More Intel

— The Patsy’s v. Patsy’s name wars are heating up once again. The owner of the Patsy’s Pizzeria franchise is suing the owner of Patsy’s Italian Restaurant in the Theater District — which does not sell pizza — for trademark infringement over use of the "Patsy’s of New York" name. The pizzeria claims that the US Trademark office blocked an application for a "Patsy’s Pizzeria" title because the department was confusing it with the "Patsy’s of New York" name, which is owned by the Midtown restaurant. So now the pizzeria proprietor has filed a new lawsuit against the 56th Street team to try to cancel the "Patsy’s of New York" trademark. A lawyer for the pizzeria says that the rival Italian restaurant "is blocking our guy’s application at the trademark office," while a rep for the Midtown establishment tells the Post: "They have raised this same issue over and over again, and have been shot down every time."

— Flora Coffee and Flora Bar, the Estela team’s two new projects in the Met Breuer museum on the Upper East Side, are almost ready to go. Here’s a peek at the pastry selection at Flora Coffee:

The team held friends and family meals at Flora Bar over the weekend, where crab legs and other seafood delicacies were served to attendees. Stay tuned for more info and a look around the spaces later this week.

— Selvaggia Pizzetti, the Italian-born restaurateur behind failed UES sweets shop Crave.It, was indicted for grand larceny last week. Before opening her gelato and cookie shop, Pizzetti worked for an elderly coffee equipment salesmen. Her former employer recently discovered that, while managing his books, Pizzetti made 22 unauthorized wire transfers to her bank account. In a statement about the case, Manhattan District Attorney Cyrus Vance notes: "This defendant is accused of stealing more than a million dollars from her 94-year-old employer to bankroll a pie-in-the-sky business venture."

— New York critic Adam Platt gives two stars to Floyd Cardoz’s new Soho restaurant, Paowalla.Here’s Platt on some of his favorite entrees: "Cardoz also offers an excellent chicken for two (poured with a jus flavored with the mangosteenlike kokum fruit), but if it’s a taste of modern India you’re after, try the tender chunks of chicken tikka, touched with curry leaf, or the halibut, garnished in the Bombay style with a delicate watermelon curry and a scattering of popped rice."

— After a decade on East 10th Street, the owners of Dieci have decided to call it quits. The subterranean Italian restaurant closed at the end of September. No word yet on what will take its place. In other neighborhood closure news, East Village Burritos & Bar and Apna at the end of Curry Row have both been dark lately. A sign in the window of the Mexican restaurant notes that it’s closed for "construction work."

— Inspired by the release of the book Ten Restaurants That Changed America, Post critic Steve Cuozzo offers his own list of seven establishments that had a huge impact on NYC dining. Pastis makes the cut: "The one-two punch of a bright and affordable, provincial French menu and McNally’s genius for hype (i.e., ‘no reservations taken’ — except for celebrities) drew the noshing millions. Although what’s now the High Line Park remained a derelict train trestle, the white-hot Pastis scene kick-started an influx of cutting-edge eateries just as meat wholesalers began moving out." He also name-checks The Arepa Lady, Ruby Foo’s, The Grocery, and Hatsuhana.

— And finally here’s a look at some of the delectable Malaysian dishes on the menu at Kopitiam on the Lower East Side