Alpharetta Bar: 'We're Not That Mulligan's'

ALPHARETTA -- More fallout from a controversial t-shirt about Barack Obama. A Cobb County restauranteur unveiled a shirt comparing the presidential candidate to the likeness of the cartoon character Curious George.

Now, an entirely different restaurant is crying foul, calling it a costly case of mistaken identity.

At Mulligan's Grill in Alpharetta, the phone won't stop ringing.

Michelle Malas and other employees are running out of patience.

"Our bartender was literally cussed out," Malas said.

Callers are confusing Mulligan's Grill in Alpharetta with Mulligan's Food and Spirits in Marietta, where the owner has come up with a t-shirt that compares Democratic presidential hopeful Barack Obama with the cartoon character Curious George.

Civil rights groups are outraged over the shirts and the comparison.

That's led to a steady stream of phone calls, mostly hostile at the other Mulligan's.

"We've tried to explain it's not us," Malas said. "Different owner, not same company."

It's definitely affecting business. On what is historically their busiest night, most tables sit vacant. They've tried reasoning, posting signs outside, and even turning the tables.

But the frustration remains -- in part because this isn't the first time this has happened. They've gone through other misunderstandings at the hand of the other Mulligan's.

They said this is the last straw. As of the first of the year, Mulligan's Grill in Alpharetta is changing its name.

The company that owns the rights to Curious George thinks the image on the t-shirt is offensive and said they may take action against the Marietta bar owner.