[personal profile] rootofnewt
i like pizzaria uno. i can usually order an individual spinoccoli pizza and be happy.

today, after suffering horrendous beltway traffic, boy and i finally made it over to a friend's home, where we all set out together for the uno's in bowie, md.

we waited a bit outside, went in, got our drinks, put in our orders, and our pizzas arrived without *too* much of a delay. our waitress was really nice and refilled our drinks promptly, but the place was packed and the kitchen slow. no problem--my group was happy and patient.

our pizzas arrived and we all dug in (except boy, who was surrepitiously sneaking pita from his backpack). with my first bite, i realized it was chewy. chewy like an onion skin or a really rubbery broccoli stem. suddenly, i felt weird, so i ended up picking it out of my mouth.

it was the fingertip of a latex glove.

yeah, i freaked. sheesh, the LAST thing i need to do is EAT something which causes anaphylactic reactions if i simply touch it or breathe around it... i sort of froze... the waitress came to check on us, and i showed it to her. she went back to the kitchen... came back and offered to have them make one with ALL fresh, untouched ingredients in a clean area. i just nodded yeah.

by the time the pizza arrived, though, i couldn't really swallow or breathe without concentrating on staying calm. and i was itchy as hell. not to mention, i didn't really TRUST the kitchen by now.

i did NOT want to use an epipen. i did NOT want to go to the ER (just what i need--a latex-saturated environment). then i gave in and dug in boy's backpack, looking for an epipen. i found an epinephrine inhaler and decided that would make me happier (epi straight onto the swollen throat tissue is quite effective early on).

well, i'm okay now. the hives went away, the throat swelling subsided, i just felt incredibly jittery, paranoid, and on edge... oh, and it made my TEETH hurt horribly. they still do.

*sigh*

folks, natural latex rubber just should NOT be used in food production. this is the first uno's i've visited which used rubber... and it was the first time i didn't ASK whether they used it or not.

i know i should've used the epipen before i felt the reaction. i know i should've gone to the hospital, but dammit... i was scared. i still am.

and i'm angry.

i still got charged for my pizza.

that doesn't make me angry--my friends will eat it... but sheesh, when you find non-food items in a dish, that dish is usually comped.

Date: 2002-03-23 09:55 pm (UTC)
From: [identity profile] ismene.livejournal.com
Oh god. That's awful and disgusting. I can't believed they still charged you for the pizza, too! Definitely call their corporate office and raise hell.

Date: 2002-03-24 07:13 am (UTC)
From: [identity profile] queensheba.livejournal.com
They *definitely* shouldn't have charged you for that! I mean, it's good that they use gloves at all, but they really should wake up to how many people are allergic to latex - our hospital patient-care areas are supposed to be completely latex-free, and in the lab, we use latex gloves, but those of us with mild allergies use non-latex. I'm sorry that happened to you - you don't expect something you're completely allergic to, that's not even *edible,* to be in your food!

Date: 2002-03-24 06:37 pm (UTC)
From: [identity profile] mactavish.livejournal.com
It sounds almost like one of those single finger "mini-condoms" used for covering finger bandaids during food production. I think those are always latex.

But they absolutely, definitely should have comped your food, if not given you a certificate for a free meal for two later, or refunded the price of the meal whether you could eat it or not.

Date: 2002-03-24 06:53 pm (UTC)
From: [identity profile] krasota.livejournal.com
it could've been the tip of a finger cot or a glove... it was *just* the tip, though... about an inch, with a jagged cut around the edge. definitely NOT factory milled that way. ;) now, it could've been an errant tip that adhered to a glove/cot in factory and fell off while someone was prepping. who knows.

but it did NOT make my immune system too happy.

Date: 2002-03-24 07:42 am (UTC)
ashbet: (Pensive Devil-Girl)
From: [personal profile] ashbet
RAISE HELL. Seriously. That's shitty, and awful, and you should get a SETTLEMENT from it, not a fucking charge for the pizza!!

***hugs*** I'm so sorry, hon :(

-- Andi

Date: 2002-03-24 08:40 am (UTC)
From: [identity profile] sheilamarie.livejournal.com
I'd at least call the corp. HQ and tell them what happened. Maybe they'll offer to comp a meal later on or something. Sorry this happened :( *huggles*

Date: 2002-03-24 04:55 pm (UTC)
From: [identity profile] elnigma.livejournal.com
horrible story. sorry it happened. sheesh.. can't you be cut some more breaks??

Date: 2002-03-24 08:06 pm (UTC)
From: [identity profile] absinthea.livejournal.com
You know people have sued over things 100 times more trivial than that and walked away with several thousands of dollars. *raises eyebrow*

At any rate, Im glad to hear that your bod is none the worse for the wear after that whole ordeal.

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