Cautionary Tale for Both Patron & Restaurant
The other night, the bartender of a restaurant I frequent, told me the resto had just had an allergic experience that would interest me.
A couple came in with about five other people and they all sat and ordered. The woman identified herself as anaphylactic to nuts. The kitchen, the bartender said, went out of their way to create a safe dish for this patron. They used clean pans and clean utensils and the head chef made her dish himself. The table was served and the allergic patron proceeded to taste her boyfriend’s pasta, which had walnut pesto. (The BF's pasta dish was identified as walnut pesto on the menu - I just checked). According to the bartender, the allergic patron started yelling at the waiter, “Why didn’t you tell me HIS dish had nuts?” And then: “Does anyone have an Epi-pen?” The restaurant directed her to the nearest ER where she proceeded to go with her boyfriend.
Even though this story is now told to you third hand and certainly details are missing, generally speaking: how many issues can you see here and how would you fix them?
A couple came in with about five other people and they all sat and ordered. The woman identified herself as anaphylactic to nuts. The kitchen, the bartender said, went out of their way to create a safe dish for this patron. They used clean pans and clean utensils and the head chef made her dish himself. The table was served and the allergic patron proceeded to taste her boyfriend’s pasta, which had walnut pesto. (The BF's pasta dish was identified as walnut pesto on the menu - I just checked). According to the bartender, the allergic patron started yelling at the waiter, “Why didn’t you tell me HIS dish had nuts?” And then: “Does anyone have an Epi-pen?” The restaurant directed her to the nearest ER where she proceeded to go with her boyfriend.
Even though this story is now told to you third hand and certainly details are missing, generally speaking: how many issues can you see here and how would you fix them?
Comments
1) should be more knowledgeable about her own situation
2) should carry her own Epi-Pen (I find it hard to fathom that someone who truly has any sort of anaphylactic food allergy would go out to dinner without one!), and
3) should know not to taste someone else's food without being 100% sure that it's SAFE!
My 7 year old daughter is allergic to tree nuts like I am, and SHE knows not only that she shouldn't taste anyone else's food (at school, camp, Girl Scouts, etc.), but that she should not share her own food with other people, in case they might have a food allergy that she doesn't know about.
It is the woman's responsibility to take charge for her allergy. Why on earth was she eating someone else's dish without checking it? To blame it on the waiter is just irresponsible and/or uninformed. She needs to educate herself.
Second, why isn't she carrying her own epi-pen!?!?!?!
Third, I would have likely called 911 rather than drive to the hospital. Especially if I had to be 'directed to the nearest' one.
But that's a bystander making a mistake... For the allergic person themselves to make such an error is crazy! Actually... thinking about it, perhaps some people just have that kind laid-back attitude to their alleries -- if my mother were allergic, I think she'd be just as casual, because it's in her nature. Just recently she lost a cap on her tooth because she decided that the Mold&Mildew spray worked so well at getting rid of the stains in the bath, she'd spray it on her toothbrush to see if she could scrub the coffee stains off her teeth -- never mind that it's toxic. She survived fine, but the cap fell out two days later, and she finds that annoying but still doesn't seem to see the danger of putting bathspray in her mouth -- which just blows my mind.
If the diner at your restaurant was of a similar temperament as my mother, it is not surprising that she tasted someone else's food and wasn't carrying an Epi-pen.
However, on the top of the list of issues here for me is that this woman now makes restaurants wary about serving anyone with food allergies. As someone with celiac disease, I'm annoyed because it's issues like this (people not taking responsibility for their own mistakes and blaming the restaurant/servers) that give us a bad name.
We have to keep in mind that while we suffer with these issues everyday, we're asking for understanding and care from restaurants, not for them to treat us as irresponsible children.
My husband never eats nuts when he is out with me. We are too worried about the kiss of death.
2. She should have had an epi-pen and benadryl on her. Even cute clutches can fit them.
3. She should have known better than to take a bite of food without confirming it didn't have nuts.
4. She shouldn't have blamed the restaurant for her own mistake. Her mistake, I have to say, is totally understandable- everyone forgets now and then. But it was her mistake, not the restaurant's, and despite the fact that a trip to the ER really wrecks an evening, she shouldn't have blamed the restaurant or its staff.