Tag Archives: Drinking

Hospitality Industry Legal Risks: Texas Restaurant Sued For “Negligence” After Patron Drinks Beer Containing “Lye-Like Cleaning Agent”; Seeks $100,000 For Medical Costs And Damages

“…the restaurant had used the lye-like cleaning agent to disinfect the Budweiser keg that morning but had failed to properly rinse the container Hospitality Industry Injury Lawsuitsbefore refilling it with the beer (the plaintiff) would later drink…he is seeking between $50,000 and $100,000 from Red Lobster and the company that cleaned the Dallas location’s beer tap system to cover medical expenses and compensate for his physical pain…”

Though it’s an isolated incident, a man from Panama City, Fla., claims he was on the receiving end of Red Lobster’s worst nightmare when he was scorched with potassium hydroxide — lye — from a Budweiser he drank during a business lunch in Dallas earlier this month. According to The Dallas Observer, Justin Grogg took a sip of his beer and immediately felt his throat, esophagus and stomach starting to burn.

According to Grogg’s lawsuit, he got the attention of the restaurant’s manager, who told him to “drink water and go to the hospital.” The complaint alleges the manager knew that the beer tap system had been cleaned that morning with potassium hydroxide, which is caustic and can cause severe bodily harm if swallowed.

Doctors treated Grogg quickly, but he still experienced “severe pain” and was told he could develop “esophageal strictures, esophageal reflux changes, and/or pharyngeal infection in the future as a result of the ingestion of the potassium hydroxide.”

For more:  http://money.msn.com/now/post.aspx?post=1eb6230e-9215-4124-bd5f-5c9eb5ff49ce

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Filed under Food Illnesses, Guest Issues, Injuries, Liability, Management And Ownership, Risk Management

Hospitality Industry Legal Risks: Georgia Restaurant Group Settles Alcohol-Related "Wrongful Death Lawsuit" For $1.1 Million; "Post-Shift Drinking By Employees Is Rampant In Restaurant Industry"

 “It is rampant in the restaurant industry…it is a
culture of post-shift drinking, and in some restaurants, drinking during the
shift. It’s almost like a fringe benefit in some high-end restaurants, this
tradition of drinking after work.”

Husk’s owner, Marietta, Ga.-based Neighborhood Dining Group Inc., and its insurer agreed last month to settle the suit for $1.1 million. The company denied fault or liability.

The fiery crash and lawsuit also have put restaurants across the USA on notice that a tradition at many restaurants — in which employees share a drink after work in a spirit of camaraderie — can have devastating consequences.

The 4 a.m. crash occurred last December, when Adam Burnell, 32, an assistant manager and sommelier at Charleston’s Husk restaurant, allegedly drove his Audi into the back of a Mustang driven by Quentin Miller, 32. The crash slammed Miller’s car into a concrete wall; it erupted in flames, trapping him inside. He died at the scene. Burnell, who prosecutors said had a blood-alcohol level of 0.24%, three times the legal limit, was charged with felony driving under the influence.

Miller’s family filed a wrongful-death lawsuit, alleging that Husk allowed Burnell to drink to excess on its premises after hours and then drive drunk. It was a stumble for a restaurant that was named “Best New Restaurant in America” by Bon Appetit magazine months earlier. Husk also was ranked one of the “101 Best Places to Eat in the World” by Newsweek magazine last month.

Burnell, who sustained minor injuries and is awaiting trial, was not named as a defendant.

Neighborhood Dining Group already had a policy that prohibits employees of its four restaurants — three in Charleston and one in Atlanta — from drinking on the premises, President David Howard says.

For more:  http://www.usatoday.com/news/nation/story/2012-09-04/restaurants-drinking-lawsuit-crash-south-carolina/57586486/1

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Filed under Claims, Crime, Guest Issues, Injuries, Insurance, Labor Issues, Liability, Management And Ownership, Training