If you have a food allergy, please never come here. Even if you don't, I'd still recommend avoiding this place.
We came in on Wednesday, 7/1, for a family lunch before leaving town. Our waitress was super kind and friendly. When I ordered, I told her that I was gluten-free and had a gluten allergy due to celiac disease.
When our food arrived, my meal didn't come with chips. They explained that the chips were cooked in the same fryer as gluten-containing foods and offered me coleslaw instead. I don't eat coleslaw, so I thanked them and said it was fine. At that point, I was glad the kitchen and waitstaff were being considerate of my allergy.
Our waitress then came back and offered me a side salad instead since I hadn't been informed that my meal had been changed until after it was brought to the table. I accepted, and she rang it in.
While I was waiting for my salad, I overheard my waitress talking to the manager on duty. They were discussing my meal, so I turned to listen. The manager was only about 10 feet from our table, so it was very easy to hear the conversation. I heard the manager tell the waitress that the burger I had just eaten contained gluten and had been made with a regular hamburger bun, even though I had clearly stated that I had an allergy.
I immediately became extremely anxious because I believed I had just eaten gluten, which could seriously harm me. After the manager finished criticizing the waitress, she went back to work and never came over to tell us that I may have been served gluten. We had to wave her down ourselves and ask about the conversation we had just overheard. She responded, "Yeah, it wasn't entered correctly, but let me check whether the cook made it correctly or not."
There was no apology, no sense of urgency, and it didn't seem like she had any intention of speaking to us. If I had needed immediate medical attention, it could have been delayed because the manager never informed us of the possible mistake.
My side salad was brought to the table, but I didn't even take a bite. I asked the manager whether I would be charged for it because I assumed it had been offered as a courtesy since there had been no communication about the changes to my meal. I explained the situation, and all she said was, "I'll just take the salad then," before removing it from the table. Again, there was no apology or acknowledgment of the situation.
If she had simply explained why they couldn't accommodate my allergy and communicated with us respectfully, this experience would have been very different. Instead, she was rude and completely insensitive to the fact that she had caused a guest to panic over the possibility of consuming something that could cause serious harm.
I understand that not every restaurant can safely accommodate food allergies because of the way their food is prepared. However, that was never explained to me. Based on the way my order was handled, I was under the impression that they had procedures in place for accommodating allergies.
I am extremely upset because I am now worried that I may have consumed gluten, and I am even more disappointed by the way the manager handled the situation. read more