Why lie about health problems?

[Kisa]

I had the privelage of dealing with this gem about a year ago when I was a Taco Bell noob and didn't even know about CS.
I was working on front counter when a woman came in. I don't remember the exact details of the conversation so i'll ad-lib a bit.

Me: Hi how are you today?
SC: Ok I guess...(she had an attitude with me from the second she walked in)
Me: That's good! May I take your order?
SC: Well duh...that's why I'm up here....
Me: Oh....sorry.......silly me......(Note: I was much more apologetic back then)
SC: I want a bean burrito with NO ONIONS. I am DEATHLY allergic to onions.
Me: Ok, I'll go let them know.

I mark -onion on the screen and run back to inform the cooks of her onion allergy.
And, nothing against people with allergies, but if you are so severely allergic to something that even a teeny lick could kill you, it's best to avoid fast food places that carry said item like the plague. The ingerdiants are kept next to each other and are constantly being cross contaminated by hands, surfaces, etc. If you are deathly allergic to cheese, we can try our hardest to keep cheese out of your taco, but cheese often lands in with the lettuce, cheese gets smeared on the counters we make food on, cheese get's touched by the hands that make said food. I really don't think it's worth the risk.
I let them know so the cooks canbe extra causious but it's not a guarantee.

Me: Ok, I let them know. What else can I get for you?
SC: I also want a 5 layer burrito with NO SOUR CREAM! I am SEVERELY allergic to SOUR CREAM.
Me: Ok.

I mark -sour on the screen and run back to the cooks again.

SC: I also don't want nacho cheese. I am DEATHLY allergic to NACHO cheese.
Me: Alright.

I think it's kind of strange how she is allergic to nacho cheese but not cheddar cheese, but I'm not going to dramatically jump on the counter, point a finger at her and shout "LIAR"!!! I wasn't about to doubt someones allergies. I tell the cooks again.

Me: Anything else?
SC: And a grande soft taco with NO LETTUCE! I am DEATHLY allergic to lettuce.
Me: *sigh* ok

I run back again to tell them about her lettuce allergy.

Me: She's allergic to lettuce so no lettuce on the grande soft taco.
CW: Just ring her up for a soft taco then.
Me: Why??
CW: The grande soft taco is basically a soft taco with nacho cheese and she's allergic to nacho cheese.
Me: Oooohhhh...ok. *walks back* I'm going to give you a regular soft taco -lettuce because the grande soft taco has nacho cheese.
SC: I know that! I want it on there!
Me: But...you're allergic...
SC: Ring it up! Ggrraannnndddeeeee.....Ssooooofffftt.......miiiinn nuusssss.....lleeetttt
Me: Ok. Ok. anything else?
SC: No. And that's To Go.
Me: That will be $x.xx.
SC: Ok.

She paid, got her sauces and napkins and whatnot then waited at the counter while I wiped trays.

SC: I'm not REALLY allergic you know.
Me: Pardon?
SC: I'm not allergic to anything.
Me: Uhhh....ummm....
SC: I just know that you HAVE to say you are DEATHLY allergic or else they will just put it on anyway.
Me: oh....
SC: I learned how things work in fast food. *nose in the air*

Yep lady, you got us allll figured out. You say "no onions" and we smother it in onions just in case you change your mind. Unless you drop the "a" word, we don't listen to a word you say. We hear "allergic" and our Fast Food Programming kicks in the makes us SUPER cautious.

[zombiequeen]

And people like her are why I get the dirty looks and "Oh, really?" sarcastically from people when I tell them I am allergic to all forms of citrus and cinnamon. Except, you know, I would actually puff up and die if I ingested them.
When I had kids pull that sort of thing at the camp, I'd let a cook know and they would have to go to the manager's office and fill out an allergen sheet and all that. It quickly discouraged the ones who were faking allergies from their shenanigans.
I also ask at places I would like to eat at (during non busy times, if I can help it) and keep benadryl in my purse just in case. Hubby and I just don't go to dessert places, between the allergies and my intolerances I can't eat anything!

[dragon_wings]

Ugh. That's so... So... I don't have a word to describe that level of EW-ness. Of course it's not a first.
If I just want beef and cheese on my tacos I'll tell the cashier or order taker 'beef and cheese only'.

[zombiequeen]

I've also never had problems with ordering something without cheese and getting it anyways. If I do end up with something I don't want, it's generally because I order it wrong or something silly, but you know, easily fixed.
Strangely enough, most fast-food people actually want you to be happy with your order because they don't want it happening to them (from my experience with reassuring trainees after they deal with the sucky people in front of me in line)

[LuckIsOnMySide]

Wow, I don't think I possess the level of restraint you showed in this post . If it were me, after she had said:

SC: I just know that you HAVE to say you are DEATHLY allergic or else they will just put it on anyway.
Me: oh....
SC: I learned how things work in fast food. *nose in the air*

I would have slapped her and said, 'Bitch, please!'

[kaherbert]

Idiots like that make it difficult for people like me who do have a deadly allergy. I agree completely about avoiding restaurants that use your allergin. I'm deathly allergic to peanuts. I'll never eat at 5 Guys, but I admire the fact they are up front about their use of peanut oil.


I've landed in the ER several times because I was lied to. I try and call new places at off hours to check because if they use peanut oil in the deep frier I can die from simply touching a surface or breathing in the fumes.

[Moon]

Yeah, faking allergies to that extent is pretty lame. I'm "allergic" to pickles (as I've mentioned in another thread... not a "puff up and die" but really just a severe aversion to the taste and texture) but I'm not going to make a huge deal over it, just say "no pickle". And if one ends up in my burger anyway, just make an eeewww face as I discover it and *gasp* quietly pick it out and put it aside.



If she really were allergic to onions, TB would be the LAST place she should go... One of the ingredients to pretty much all of their sauces is... ONION POWDER. Read one of the packets sitting in the back of your fridge, you'll see it on there. Of course, she'd have a problem anywhere because onion is a common ingredient to a lot of sauces, including Italian.

[rose_metal_nz]

Don't mean to take the EW's side here, but my best friend is allergic to tomatoes - but not tomato sauce (think I mentioned it in another allergy thread).
When he asks for 'no tomatoes' ANYWHERE, think fast food to pricey restaurants, almost without fail they will still put tomatoes on - especially if he doesn't ask for no tomato sauce.
Luckily he almost always checks, and will come back & politely point it out.
If he mentions he's allergic tho, no problems.
I can't even remember anyone asking him why he's allergic to tomatoes & not sauce (we think it's the acidity or something)!

[emax4]

If she really were allergic to onions, TB would be the LAST place she should go... One of the ingredients to pretty much all of their sauces is... ONION POWDER. Read one of the packets sitting in the back of your fridge, you'll see it on there. Of course, she'd have a problem anywhere because onion is a common ingredient to a lot of sauces, including Italian.

Exactly. My response probably would have been, "oh, I knew you were lying, because anyone who is truly allergic knows to avoid fast food places because, well.. y'know.. their lives depend on it.."

Cue shock

[AccountingDrone]

You can be allergic to some forms of foods but not others, I have a friend who can not do fresh onions or garlic but they can do dried, something about the sulphur compounds being driven off in the drying process. I can sort of eat scallops, they give me the runs but clams, oysters, mussels, coquina make me projectile vomit. [I will risk the occasional serving of scallops, but I accept the runs I will be getting in about half an hour. I used to occasionally make the mistake of trying clam chowder to see if I could eat it yet - someone once told me that you can grow out of allergies, and it smells so nummy ]

Hubby is allergic to sulfa based drugs, he gets nasty hives. I have issues with topical cortico-steroids, they give me hives ... which can make summers interesting. If I get a burn I use silvadene which gives him hives, and he gets poison ivy and uses cortisone which gives me hives. We have occasionally just decided to sleep apart for a few weeks until stuff gets settled out

[Micer]

I'm guilty of the 'allergic' to onion thing; it's more of a texture thing, biting into even little bits of onion just hits the right button for a gag reflex for me, to the point where I will sit there picking every bit of onion out of food if I know it's there. But it had to be used only in one situation - we went out for burgers and requested straight off 'No onion.' Got burger - it's covered in onions and everything else, okay, maybe the cashier didn't hear it. Take it back, 'Please, no onion, just plain. Plain. Plain as plain can be.' Get it back again, still with some sad onion chunks and the condiments merely scraped off, judging by the smear of mustard and ketchup still staining the bun.

Mr. Micer gets fed up at this point, goes back to the counter and asks for the manager, telling her that I'm allergic to onions and to please, please, -please- just make a plain burger. Manager proceeds to turn around and start yelling at the guys on the line in spanish to make a fresh burger, no onion - she could get very sick from it, thankfully, no onion, third time is the charm.

It is funny though, only place I can have onion and enjoy it is when it's cooked to mush in a chilli.

[EricKei]

There have been other threads on here that go into great detail about food allergies -- I think one of the ones from the past 2-3 months or so explains WHY it's quite possible to be allergic to fresh tomatoes (for example) but be just fine eating tomato sauce or ketchup.

*PS - Ketchup will have onion powder in there too as often as not. Depends on brand, methinks.

[BlaqueKatt]

I can't even remember anyone asking him why he's allergic to tomatoes & not sauce (we think it's the acidity or something)!

it's more likely that the process of cooking breaks down whatever chemical/protein he reacts to.

[Pezzle]

Eeek, I'm glad I don't have any allergies to delicious things, or ones so severe that I could die from being near it for a short period of time. That's got to suck guys -peanut and allergen free hugs-

[bainsidhe]

People like this woman make me so mad and gives people with real allergies a bad name. A coworker can't take aspertine (sp?) because it gives her hives. She gets weird looks when she explains that no she can't have XYZ common low-cal product because of what's in it.

I've had offending items left on my food plenty of times, thank goodness I'm not allergic. If it's something I truly hate, then I ask for it to be remade, otherwise I'll grumble and try to pick it off. Green peppers for example. They are very strong and overpower anything they're in. I can't stand them, but as long as they are big enough pieces, I can usually pick them off. Yet in some dishes, the flavor leeches out into the entire dish, then I ask for it to be remade.