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- Derek Weston via fox - U.S.
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Chili's margarita mix-up leaves customers and staff with chemical burns in North Carolina
ReChili's margarita mix-up leaves customers and staff with chemical burns in North Carolina
A Chili's in Forest City, North Carolina, served margaritas made with an industrial degreaser mistaken for sugar or salt, injuring three customers and two employees, health officials said.
Customers and employees at a Chili's Grill & Bar in Forest City, North Carolina, suffered chemical burns after drinking margaritas that had been mixed with an industrial cleaning chemical mistaken for sugar or salt, according to the Foothills Health District. Three customers consumed the contaminated drinks, and two restaurant employees also reported symptoms after exposure to the substance.
According to the health district's preliminary findings, the mix-up started on Monday, when an employee received an industrial degreaser from a contracted worker and placed it in an unmarked container. The container was brought inside the restaurant and left in the bar area. Two days later, an employee preparing the bar for lunch service found the unlabeled container, believed its contents were sugar or salt, and used it to prepare the margarita station.
Shortly after the restaurant opened, three customers drank the beverages and immediately experienced discomfort and chemical burns in and around their mouths, the health district said. After the customers alerted staff, two employees tasted the substance and reported similar symptoms. The health district's account describes the chain of events as a single lapse in labeling and storage, with the chemical reaching the drink station before any staff member recognized it.
Chili's said in a statement to Fox News Digital that the company took immediate action to support those affected and to avoid any further injuries. The company said two guests and team members were injured in what it described as an isolated incident, and that it is actively investigating the circumstances. The company's account differed from the health district's preliminary findings, which described three customers as affected, and the company did not address the number of employees the health district reported as symptomatic.
After the Foothills Health District launched an investigation, the restaurant's food service permit was immediately suspended. It was reinstated on Thursday after specialists determined the restaurant met all other food safety standards. The suspension and reinstatement tied the restaurant's ability to serve food to a finding that the problem was confined to the chemical handling failure rather than broader food safety conditions.
The health district used the incident to remind all food service establishments in North Carolina that chemicals must be properly labeled and stored away from food-handling areas. Jason Masters, health director of the Foothills Health District, said in a statement that the incident highlights the importance of proper chemical labeling, storage and handling, as required by the North Carolina Food Code, to prevent chemical contamination and protect public health. The warning is aimed at the wider food service industry in the state, not only at the Forest City location.
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