‘Grossed out and sickened’: A Texas woman found a cow tooth in a taco and sued the restaurant for $250K — but what makes a tainted food claim stick?

“Obviously, Plaintiff [Castillo] was grossed out and sickened,” the lawsuit continues. “She was able to visit a doctor later that evening and was given some prescriptions. The manager Marty was notified of this situation, and it is unclear what if anything he did to remedy the problem.”

The lawsuit, which is seeking $250,000 in damages, claims Castillo suffered “physical pain and mental anguish,” “physical impairment,” “lost enjoyment of life” and medical expenses.

It also alleges that Torchy’s “knew about various problems contained in their sold food products” and that this incident happened because “the food was not reasonably prepared, inspected or delivered prior to consumption by the Plaintiff.” Additionally, it accuses Torchy’s of negligence in monitoring their meat and preventing “foreign objects” from entering their food.

“Many hands missed this,” Scott Vasquez, Castillo’s attorney, told Moneywise. “Perhaps they are too rushed and need more help. That affects their bottom line, I know, but don’t customers deserve good quality food at the very least?”

Why a disgusting discovery in your food isn’t enough to head to court

Torchy’s Tacos didn’t respond to Moneywise’s request for comment, but local ABC affiliate KVUE-TV published a statement from the company saying they’re aware of the situation and that “food safety is a top priority.”

The eatery said a review conducted after Castillo’s complaint found that the tooth belonged to a cow, adding that their barbacoa is sourced from natural beef cheek and that incidents like this, though rare, can happen during meat processing. They also said they’re working with their supplier “to reinforce their internal procedures to prevent this from happening in the future.”

Vasquez, meanwhile, claims “Torchy’s never admitted to me that it was a cow’s tooth until a few days ago in a public response to the [KVUE] story.” He also said he hopes the lawsuit leads to better manufacturer processes and more attentiveness from in-store food workers.

Tainted food stories, meanwhile, tend to make headlines for the sheer gross out factor, with people over the years reporting anything from rodents and bugs to a severed finger in their food orders.

But just finding something disgusting in your food doesn’t mean you’ve got a case for a lawsuit.

In fact, Chicago personal injury lawyer Stephen Hoffman writes that finding something nasty in your meal — like a bug in a fast food hamburger — doesn’t qualify for damages.

“A bug is gross. Maybe it made you gag. But did you sustain an actual injury?” he adds. “In such a scenario, the best you can do is take the food back with your receipt and ask for a refund.”

The New York’s Mid Hudson Injury Law group advises that “foreign-object cases are individual matters that require showing the object was present, it caused injury and you didn’t create or introduce the object yourself.” As such, they add, “These cases rely heavily on documentation and preservation.”

The ingredients for a winning tainted food claim

If you do find an unwanted foreign object in your food while eating out, Georgia’s Ragland Law Firm LLC says to “keep all evidence as it existed when the object was discovered.”

Assuming you don’t need immediate medical attention — which should be your primary concern — the law firm adds that, if you’re still in the restaurant, call a server or manager over to bear witness. They also advise asking the staff to make a written report and to not relinquish control or possession of the evidence.

Ragland and others say that, in addition to keeping all the physical evidence — including the food and object, receipts, packaging and anything else that might be needed as evidence — you should also document the incident with photos.