West Coast Sourdough has filed a lawsuit seeking more than $15 million in damages against Cali Rays Sourdough Deli and a group of individual defendants, accusing them of stealing confidential recipes, business systems and brand identity to build a rival sandwich chain. The complaint, filed in Sacramento County Superior Court, names Cali Rays Sourdough Deli, CR Development, Inc., and individuals Gurdeep Bains, Kaldeep Uppal, Karndeep “Kay” Uppal, Rajwinder Singh, Balraj Singh and Gurpreet Singh Brar as defendants.
According to Action News Now, the case, numbered 26CV023767, was brought by WCSD, Inc. and SFB Holdings Inc., with WCSD identified as the franchisor behind the West Coast Sourdough brand. The plaintiffs are represented by the Benbrook Law Group of Sacramento. The lawsuit alleges that former West Coast Sourdough locations left the franchise system and rebranded as Cali Rays Sourdough Deli while their franchise agreements were still in effect.
Per the complaint, the defendants used confidential information, business systems and the established West Coast Sourdough brand identity to build a competing restaurant operation and recruit additional franchisees to defect. Cali Rays is accused of retaining highly similar menus, restaurant designs and layouts, and of building its operation using West Coast Sourdough’s recipes, food preparation methods, supplier information and operating systems. The complaint further alleges that defendants offered reduced or waived fees and conversion assistance to lure franchisees out of their existing agreements early, trading on West Coast Sourdough’s brand and goodwill in ways that could confuse customers about which restaurants were actually affiliated with the original chain.
A Sacramento Sandwich Chain Splinters
Former West Coast Sourdough franchisees have switched to Cali Rays Sourdough Deli, according to the Sacramento Business Journal. Five West Coast Sourdough locations across California’s Central Valley, including stores in Fresno and Clovis, rebranded to Cali Rays in April 2026 amid the ongoing corporate disputes, per The Business Journal…