The pair, who were with two other friends, booked a table at Rasika Restaurant on Sandhill, Newcastle, in March last year. On arrival they alerted staff about their peanut allergies, and chose from the menu but within minutes of eating their meals the two pals began to suffer an allergic reaction.
One of the men left the restaurant to buy some antihistamine and on return found his friend’s lips and tongue beginning to swell and struggling to speak.
An ambulance was called, and the control room advised the man to administer an Epi-pen into the leg of his friend who by now was struggling to breathe outside the restaurant. They instructed a defibrillator to be used but one could not be located.
Paramedics arrived and gave the man adrenalin and rushed him to the Royal Victoria Infirmary where he was admitted to urgent care. He was kept under observation for 12 hours and had time off work.
Environmental Health Officers from Newcastle City Council’s Food Safety Team visited Rasika to carry out an investigation.
They noted there was no precautionary allergen labelling on the menu. While this is not a legal requirement it is considered good practice as it warns customers of potential allergens so they can decide whether to eat.
Parts of a food safety pack used by staff were found to be missing and mixed nut powder on a Peshwari naan consisted of 100% ground peanut.
A garlic naan taken for sampling showed enough peanut protein to cause an allergic reaction in a susceptible person.
During a second inspection officers noted lots of potential for nut free naan to be cross contaminated with nuts due to poor storage and ineffective cleaning. The decision to prosecute the restaurant was taken.
Faruk Ahmed, a director of the business who also works in the kitchen admitted seven food safety offences at Newcastle magistrates court. He was fined £787, ordered to pay a £135 victim surcharge and £85 legal costs.
Mohammed Ali Shamsed, the food business operator and restaurant manager, who also pleaded guilty to seven food safety offences was fined £295, ordered to pay a £118 victim surcharge and £85 legal costs.
The business Rasika Sandhill Ltd also pleaded guilty to seven food safety offences and was fined £800, ordered to pay a £320 victim surcharge and £1,000 in legal costs.
In mitigation the court heard, both men, who have 30 years of experience in catering, were utterly remorseful. They were extremely worried, and Mr Ali had had sleepless nights. This was the first incident of its kind, and they were very concerned about their customers.
They have since put a disclaimer on their menu warning there might be traces of nuts and have gone on food allergen training this year. Food storage has changed to reduce the likelihood of cross contamination, and the restaurant had consistently achieved 5-star hygiene ratings.
Newcastle City Council’s Head of Public Safety and Regulation, Ed Foster, said: “This was a shocking case and a terrible ordeal for these two men and anyone else who had to witness it. Food can cause an allergic reaction or even fatality to a person with food hypersensitivity.
“Staff should be adequately trained so they understand the consequences of something going wrong.
“Food businesses need to carefully assess how food is labelled, stored, handled and prepared to identify potential cross contamination. They need to have robust procedures in place to prevent things like this from happening.
“This proves that even established restaurants with experienced staff can break the law and put their customers at risk, so I hope this sends a message to all restaurants to regularly review their practices and guard against complacency.”