Steak Yums

‘Vegas Strip Steak’ Is Less Sinister, More Business-As-Usual

Today Slate dissects the recent and heavily orchestrated launch of a top secret, patented new cut of beef — the Vegas Strip Steak — and reports that the USPTO hullabaloo may be a PR stunt, but really, all kinds of patents are filed every day. The Vegas Strip Steak is the result of a collaboration between a scientist, a researcher, and a David Burke Primehouse chef; because of trademark secrecy, it’s still unclear what cow part harbors this mysterious, four- to twelve-ounce steak. The hype and fanfare for its “discovery,” however, might lead one to mistakenly believe some dense genome had been sequenced, or some kind of cancer cured. Slate says the patenting may seem silly, but it’s all about protecting industry secrets like Popeyes’ Rip’n Chick’n, which derives from a specific cut of breast. So then, we suppose there’s no such thing as the Beeferati, either. [Slate, Earlier]

‘Vegas Strip Steak’ Is Less Sinister, More Business-As-Usual