McDonald’s sued after customer burns mouth on ‘extremely hot and overheated’ fries

S

Smiggles

Honorary Master
Joined
Feb 4, 2025
Messages
10,576
Reaction score
17,513
Location
Who Knows? Who Cares?
www.the-independent.com

McDonald’s customer badly burned by ‘extremely hot’ french fries: lawsuit

New York City woman Catherine Luongo blames the March 5 incident on employees who ‘fail[ed] to provide [her] with a safe order of fries’
www.the-independent.com www.the-independent.com
A New York City woman is suing McDonald’s after allegedly sustaining “serious and severe personal injuries and burns to [her] mouth and tongue, as a result of being served extremely hot fries,” according to a civil complaint obtained by The Independent.

In it, Catherine Luongo blames the March 5 incident, which occurred at a McDonald’s restaurant across the street from Manhattan’s Bryant Park, on the employees who “fail[ed] to provide [her] with a safe order of fries.”

Her purported physical trauma was “due solely… [to] the carelessness, recklessness and negligence” of the unnamed workers who prepared the fries in question, which the complaint describes as “overheated and not safe for human consumption.”
Click to expand...
 
AI Overview

1784789069270.png


McDonald's fries pose a legitimate burn hazard because they are flash-fried in hot oil reaching temperatures of ~ 170°C to 190°C (335°F to 375°F). When served fresh, the trapped heat and steam inside the potato can cause severe contact burns to the mouth, tongue, and fingers. [1, 2, 3, 4, 5]

Burn Hazard Context:
    • Mouth Burns: Consuming fries immediately can cause severe scalding. Several consumers have pursued litigation against McDonald's for serving "overheated" fries that caused intense trauma and tissue damage to their mouths. [1, 2]
    • Kitchen Hazards: Kitchen and deep-fryer oil is a major source of on-the-job injuries, with workers occasionally suffering severe hand, arm, and face burns from splashing grease or contact with hot baskets. [1, 2, 3]
    • Acrylamide: Like many starchy foods cooked at high temperatures, McDonald's fries naturally develop acrylamide, a chemical compound that has prompted warnings from health and consumer organizations. [1, 2]
Safe Consumption Tips:
    • Let them rest: Allow freshly served fries to sit and cool for at least 10 to 15 seconds to let the steam escape before eating.
 
Last edited:
You guys should read the articles before commenting.
There are safe temperatures to serve food at, going over that and causing issues is something that should be looked at. Especially when it's involving children and the elderly. A lot of the incidents are involving that, though the one was a flight attendant spilling overly hot coffee on someones lap.

Perhaps too far down the article for people? Or is it just reading the headline and nothing further?

Food service establishments have argued that a reasonable adult is aware that certain foods and beverages are hot, and that a potential burn is an “open and obvious” risk they knowingly assume. At the same time, if a product is so hot that normal use could land someone in the hospital, the seller is required to provide an explicit warning to all.
 
Hemi300c said:
Their Apple Pies are always hot as hell.

On topic - Americans just being Americans.
Click to expand...
For bringing up instances of restaurants serving overly hot goods and not ensuring safety?
McDonalds used to have their coffee overly hot around 90 degrees, plus the packaging wasn't sufficient, so that lawsuit helped change things + all she originally wanted was medical expenses, they refused and only offered her 800 dollars.
Ever bitten into one of their Apple pies? Things are nuclear hot and a lot of the cases are children based. So yeah, let them start being sued to start actually regulating temps so people don't get scolded.
 
porchrat said:
It's so dumb. Everyone knows chips can be hot. Check the temperature before you shove it in your gullet. It's common sense.
Click to expand...
You do know that they can be cooler on the outside than they are on the inside right? The outer shell being crispy cools quicker insulating the hotter inside, so you feel it and it feels fine. Plus your fingers are less sensitive than your mouth and lips are.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top
Sign up to the MyBroadband newsletter
X