Featured Image Credit: THE LANGE LAW FIRM/Yu Chun Christopher Wong/S3studio/Getty Images
Topics: News, Food and Drink, US News, McDonalds, New York
Niamh Shackleton
Topics: News, Food and Drink, US News, McDonalds, New York
A man has filed a lawsuit against McDonald's after allegedly nearly dying from eating a Big Mac.
Charles Olsen ordered the fan-favorite dish from a New York City-based McDonald's in 2021 via DoorDash and specifically asked for no cheese.
It wasn't that Olsen simply disliked cheese though, but because he has milk allergy - meaning eating the dairy product could have very serious consequences for him.
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In the suit filed on Friday (February 2), Olsen included a screenshot of his request to have 'NO American cheese' with his burger.
But he claims his order still came with cheese and, following the first few bites, he 'immediately felt like something wasn’t right'.
"His throat began to itch and swell," the suit claims. "He felt a burning sensation throughout his body. He looked at his girlfriend, Alexandra, and coughed ‘there’s milk in this!'"
Olsen's body started to come up in hives and he was struggling to breathe, the suit states.
His girlfriend rushed him to the emergency room and he was admitted for anaphylaxis.
As per the suit, the 28-year-old almost needed intubation to survive but doctors were eventually able to stabilize him a few hours later.
In a statement, Olsen discussed the difficulties he faces when ordering food as someone with allergies.
"I’ve had to go through my entire life having to tiptoe around menus, dealing with staff that doesn’t know how to handle food allergies, and so on," he said through his lawyers, as per the New York Post.
"Allergies should be such a simple thing to be able to cater to as an establishment. There’s no reason why it can’t be clearly listed, options aren’t included when making an order to indicate allergies, and the staff properly trained to handle such a simple thing.
"There has been progress made thankfully, but it is not enough. No one should have to fear for their health when they’re just trying to eat a meal."
The lawsuit adds that there was allegedly no allergy warning or cross-contamination warning when he made his order.
Olsen had ordered from the same McDonald's previously and made the same request without issue.
His lawyer, Jory Lange, hailed the ordeal as a 'traumatic experience' for his client who thought he could trust the Eighth Avenue restaurant.
The suit has no specified damages, but calls for the fast food chain to follow adequate food and allergy policies.
According to the New York Post, McDonald's sent a statement from the owner of the franchise that states: “Nothing is more important than the safety of our customers. We take every complaint seriously and are actively reviewing these claims.”
UNILAD has contacted McDonald's for comment.