Woman Sues NY Resto After Finding Human Finger In Her Salad
A woman is suing the fast-casual chain Chopt after she allegedly discovered part of a human finger in her salad.
The customer filed a lawsuit in Westchester County Supreme Court on Nov. 27, in which she said she purchased a salad from a Chopt location in Mount Kisco, New York, on April 7, CT Insider reported.
According to the lawsuit, while eating the salad, the woman realized she was "chewing on a portion of a human finger that had been mixed" into the meal.
Chopt and Founders Table Restaurant Group have yet to release a statement about the lawsuit.
The complaint alleged that a manager at the restaurant accidentally chopped off a part of her left pointer finger while preparing arugula.
When the manager went to the hospital, the contaminated arugula was allegedly left on the service line and served to customers, including the woman, identified by CBS News as Allison Cozzi from Greenwich, Connecticut.
Following the incident, the Westchester County Department of Health conducted an investigation, resulting in a $900 fine issued to the restaurant, as per records.
The suit claimed that the restaurant exhibited recklessness, carelessness, and negligence by providing contaminated food and failing to inspect it adequately before serving it to customers.
The Greenwich woman said in the complaint that she suffered injuries, including shock, panic attacks, migraines, cognitive impairment, nausea, dizziness, and neck and shoulder pain due to consuming the contaminated salad.
In an email to CT Insider, the woman's lawyer, Marc Reibman, stated that his client is not interested in speaking with the media.
The lawsuit does not specify the monetary damages sought by the woman, but Reibman emphasized the need for significant compensation, citing a "blatant deviation" from accepted safe practices in food preparation and service.
This incident isn't the first of its kind.
Similar occurrences have been reported in the past, including a 2016 case where a pregnant California woman allegedly found a bloody fingertip in a salad at an Applebee's restaurant.
A 2010 lawsuit claimed a Florida woman allegedly found the severed tip of a human finger in her IHOP fried chicken green salad.
In 2012, a teen in Michigan alleged that he discovered a finger while eating a roast beef sandwich he bought at an Arby's.
