The Delhi High Court has refused to grant interim injunction to Wow! Momo Foods Pvt. Ltd., which sought to restrain a Jharkhand-based eatery using the name ‘Wow Burger’.
Justice Manmeet Pritam Singh Arora held that the word “Wow” is a common English expression, laudatory in nature, and incapable of being monopolised by any single entity in the food industry. The Court found that Wow! Momo had no standalone trademark registration for ‘WOW’ or ‘WOW Burger’; its registrations were limited to composite marks like ‘Wow! Momo’, ‘Wow! China’, and ‘Wow! Chicken’.
The Court also noted that Wow! Momo had not been using ‘Wow Burger’ as a brand or trademark since 2018, when it last appeared only as a menu item, later replaced with names like ‘Moburg’. Since no prima facie case of trademark infringement or deceptive similarity was made out, the Court dismissed the application for injunction.
Emphasising that common dictionary words like “Wow” cannot be privatised, the Court concluded that consumers were unlikely to confuse the distinct branding of ‘Wow Momo’ with ‘Wow Burger’.
The matter will now proceed to trial, with the next hearing scheduled for January 15, 2026.
Appearances:
Plaintiff: Mr. Chander M. Lall, Sr. Adv. with Mr. Ankur Sangal and Mr. Ankit Arvind, Advs.
Defendants: None.
