Commercial Food Poisoning

Lt_Red · 5 May 2015 at 22:21

Went to a moderately famous female TV chefs eatery on Saturday for a birthday celebration, mentioning no names*.

24 hours later I got ill. Cripling intermittent stomach pains, unexplained and sudden lavatory visits, constant fear of flatulance kinda ill. Not nice. Still suffering 3 days later

Is there any recourse for this kind of thing?

I have checked with all the other party go-ers, all are well, but then I was the only one to have the lobster linguine.

*New Forest, cluster of citrus bearing trees, just outside of Lyndhurst

Ch3m1c4L · 5 May 2015 at 22:27

Phone them up and explain, they will take it seriously. They may even have had other complaints, and then they investigate etc. Could be them, could be cooking, could have been there supplier.

They won't know if no one complains.

Lt_Red · 5 May 2015 at 22:33

Ok then, I just did. They will "Pass my details to the restaurant and someone will call back"....

I would get some popcorn but I am not sure if I can stomach them...

Dark_Injection · 6 May 2015 at 14:15

Will be interested to see how this goes, keep us updated.

I guess it is good you told them, as said above there are a lot of factors, and they may not be at fault.

Wonder if you get any comp!

Ch3m1c4L · 6 May 2015 at 14:59

Pass your details on? So I guess the number wasn't for the specific restaurant you went to?

Hopefully they will call you back today, I would expect them to apologize, you might get a free meal/half price/buy 1 meal get the other persons free etc. But if no one else complained they might just say sorry.

Seeing as its a popular TV chefs one though, they may well be very nice with comp. due to not wanting you to go on social media and review poorly etc.

K.C. Leblanc · 6 May 2015 at 17:57

You should also contact the local council's environmental health department.

Glaucus · 6 May 2015 at 18:31

And just be aware, that you've blamed someone and you have no idea if it was them.

J-FRO · 6 May 2015 at 23:15

It's not definite OP has definitely "blamed" the restaurant so to speak. OP may have just brought it to their attention. And as for having "no idea it was them", it's not like suspicions would be entirely unfounded if OP had blamed the restaurant. OP was after all the only one to have lobster linguine and food poisoning from seafood is quite common plus it all happened within 24 hours of eating there.

Similarly you can norovirus from oysters and the symptoms don't kick in for a day or so and then the **** hits the fan.

ADT · 6 May 2015 at 23:22

Probably best to go in when you can. This passing details business hardly works

PapaLazaru · 7 May 2015 at 07:38

They will flat out deny it as you have no proof it was the linguine, that I unless you kept a stool sample (which I would imagine they will request I sent to a lab).

It has happened to me before on more than one occasion and the response is always the same.

Scam · 7 May 2015 at 11:51

PapaLazaru said:
It has happened to me before on more than one occasion and the response is always the same.

I don't think that's the response I'd expect from a 'decent' restaurant, provided you approached it in a sensible way -- i.e. didn't go in saying you were going to sue them for compo. If you go in to a decent place and say you ate there, had seafood and had suspected food poisoning and wanted to make them aware, they'd hopefully appreciate the heads up and maybe even reward you for it if you're lucky.

Glaucus · 7 May 2015 at 14:49

It's the response from a decent restraint or for the council.
The council will almost certainly investigate and a decent restaurant would check as well as probably offering some sort of goodwill jester.
However op also needs to understand he could if got poop poisoning somewhere else or even could be a bug rather than food poisoning. Just because he or others have linked the two doesn't mean they are linked to each other.

Lt_Red · 11 May 2015 at 14:00

I should have updated this Sooner. Sorry. The place in question have been really good contacting me daily checking I am ok. I have jsu about recovered now after a week of unpleasantness. Anyway they have looked into it involved a 3rd party provided all the temperature and storage information and kept me updated. 37 other people had the dish that day I was the only one that was ill Or at least the only one who repprted it. They have requested a stool sample but it's a bit late for that now.

I stated to the lady on the phone who rang me the next day that I am not after compo I just want to know if I am the only one because maybe it is not relatedaye I have an alergy or something. Anyway because I am the only one I have to assume that I should just avoid lobster from now on...

They have offeed that if I choose to go back they will look after me and offered free meal and stuff. I don't live round there and probably won't be going back anyway.

Tldr. They have been great looked after me and I won't ever eat another lobster.

Glaucus · 11 May 2015 at 14:16

Seems a bit silly, it could be a bug rather than food poisoning and you have no idea if the lobster played any part off in it.

HazardO · 11 May 2015 at 15:49

Did you eat anything else that day?

Glaucus · 11 May 2015 at 16:10

HazardO said:
Did you eat anything else that day?

It doesn't even have to be that day.
Can take several days.

It all depends what it was. There's these several non food bugs that cause similar systems.

ICEx21 · 11 May 2015 at 16:14

Glaucus said:
Seems a bit silly, it could be a bug rather than food poisoning and you have no idea if the lobster played any part off in it.

I'm not sure what's so silly about what the op as done.
He's been pretty sick after eating at the restaurant, he's contacted them, they've came back to him providing a lot of details and checking up on him while also being quite generous in asking him to come back informing him he'll be looked after.

The op's declined the offer while also stating he's not after compensation he just wanted to make sure it's not related.

If anything he's potentially ruled out one cause of sickness.

Glaucus · 11 May 2015 at 16:17

Where does any of that fall within what I have said.
I never said reporting it was silly.

He's ruled out ever eating lobster again, despite no one else reporting it and despite not knowing if that actually cause the illness.
That is pretty silly reason to never eat a delicious creature again.

ICEx21 · 11 May 2015 at 16:19

Glaucus said:
Where does any of that fall within what I have said.
I never said reporting it was silly.

He's ruled out ever eating lobster again, despite no one else reporting it and despite not knowing if that actually cause the illness.
That is pretty silly reason to never eat a delicious creature again.

Ah apologies then, I thought you were saying he was silly for contacting the restaurant.

Lt_Red · 11 May 2015 at 18:17

I have been through the days leading up to this unfortunate incident in term of what I ate who I ate with etc and through a process of elimination I am 95 percent sure that that lobster dish did me in.

I have ruled it out simply because I don't think I could face it gain after this week and maybe if there is se kind of alergy or something causing it then so be it.

Delicious creature yes would I risk it gain in case I am alergy in order to find out. No way.

Anyway all well that ends well. I have thanked the restaurant for thier attention And the way they have handled this.