Christopher Kimball's Milk Street

When Kimball left America's Test Kitchen (ATK) and began Milk Street, he was sued by ATK for copying the concept and style of ATK. [4][5]

October 31, 2016, Boston Commons Press sued Kimball. The then-Brookline based company (now based in Boston), which owns America’s Test Kitchen (ATK) and Cook’s Country, filed a lawsuit in Suffolk Superior Court against Kimball that accuses him of "literally and conceptually ripped off America’s Test Kitchen".[6]

Boston Commons Press claims that Kimball was in breach of trust when he built his new business while still employed by ATK. They also claim that he used their company's recipes and databases to enable Milk Street to be in direct competition with ATK.[6]

Jack Bishop, the chief creative officer at ATK, stated that the Milk Street magazine was very similar to Boston Commons Press-owned Cook's Illustrated. Kimball founded that magazine and was editor until November 2015 when he left over a contract dispute.[6][1][7]

The lawsuit was settled in 2019.[8]

Kimball's Milk Street Organization was also sued by Milk Street Cafe, owned by Marc Epstein, for trademark infringement. Epstein's Milk Street Cafe, established 35 years ago, is located nearby at 50 Milk Street.[9] The lawsuit was decided in Kimball's favor.[10]