Asked for Big Tasty and got a “Mc Gecko”. A French customer was surprised when he bit into a sandwich he had ordered through a delivery app at a McDonald’s restaurant on the outskirts of Paris. The customer sues the fast food chain and seeks compensation.
The 38-year-old Pamela saga began on the night of February 12, 2021, when she used the Uber Eats delivery app to order “Big Tasty”, one of the most famous sandwiches at McDonald’s in France. The product was prepared in a chain restaurant in Saint-Witz, on the outskirts of Paris.
After taking the first bite, Pamela felt “something strange”. “I opened the sandwich and then I found a squashed lizard,” she told French newspaper Le Parisien.
Christelle, Pamela’s friend, with whom she had dinner, witnessed the event. “The animal was mixed in sauce. The cook saw it, of course,” she says.
In a video posted on social media, Pamela says at first she thought she had bitten a tomato. “When I ask for the menu, I always pull out the tomato. So I opened my sandwich, took out the bread, and look what I found inside! As you can see, it’s not a fly, it’s a gecko!”, she says.
The customer remembers his concern about possible contamination. She was breastfeeding her eight-month-old baby at the time. “I was afraid my son was sick, so I was scared,” she says. She says she stopped breastfeeding the baby as a precaution.
That same night, Pamela went to McDonald’s in town with her friend to ask for an explanation. “I got the impression that they weren’t surprised at all. The cook behind the counter heard the whole conversation and didn’t even come to see us. They said the manager wasn’t there,” he said. she says she.
Employees “without explanation” offered a 10% discount for the customer’s next order. An attendant insisted on removing the sandwich that Pamela had refused.
fear of contamination
Pamela says she had trouble sleeping after the incident and woke up feeling sick. Fearing contamination, the French woman decided to consult a doctor who reported that the gecko is a vector of disease such as salmonella and prescribed antibiotics. That same day, a McDonald’s executive contacted him and suggested that the case be resolved by triggering the company’s insurance.
“It means they understood there was a problem. What I really wanted was for them to apologize to me,” he says.
The client then decided to seek a lawyer who decided to take the case forward. A regional public agency responsible for civil protection was called in.
The sandwich was analyzed by a team of veterinarians. Weeks later, they concluded that they could not identify the source of the problem.
Inconclusive internal investigation
McDonald’s Saint-Witz headquarters said it “takes customer claims seriously”. Newspaper report contacted Le ParisienThe company’s communications agency in France stated that “an internal investigation was conducted at the time of the incident, but no evidence of impropriety was found”.
“The management of the Saint-Witz restaurant will continue to provide Justice with the necessary elements relevant to this case,” the agency said. He also states that food quality and safety “is the group’s priority, and various audits and controls are implemented both among suppliers and within the business in the preparation of menus.”
This is not the first case of McDonald’s in France. In 2019, a customer from Saintry-sur-Seine, located on the outskirts of Paris, discovered a Band-Aid on a cheeseburger purchased from a chain restaurant. In 2017, in the municipality of Brétigny-sur-Orge, south of the French capital, a young man encountered mold in a glass where his soda was served.
According to Pamela’s lawyer, McDonald’s de Saint-Witz is being sued for endangering someone else’s life or health. The trial is scheduled for February 2023 at the courthouse in Pontoise on the outskirts of Paris.
The French woman is leaving a piece of advice to McDonald’s customers on Twitter with a photo of the gecko on her hamburger: “Always open your sandwiches”.
source: Noticias
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