Tea contaminated by a cleaning solution made a woman and her daughter “violently ill” at a Layton restaurant last year, alleges a lawsuit filed Wednesday in 2nd District Court.
Selina Beilstein, 44, of Layton, continued to have health issues — such as painful swallowing and a hiatal hernia — after drinking the tea at the Layton Einstein Bros. Bagels in July 2016.
The woman “tasted something amok with her drink” after filling her cup from a dispenser at the restaurant, the lawsuit states. Her daughter tried it to see if it tasted wrong, and they both were violently ill immediately after drinking it.
According to the suit, a cleaning solution called Urnex had been left in the dispenser, which caused vomiting and nausea. It also burned their throats and esophaguses, and caused burning and numbness in their mouths, lips, tongues and throat, the lawsuit states. They also suffered loss of taste and esophageal erosion.
The two women were treated that day by medical providers, who had them drink fluids to flush or dilute the toxins, according to the lawsuit. Beilstein also developed hives and a rash.
She continued to have health problems for months after, according to the lawsuit, which says she had two endoscopic procedures because of the damage done to her esophagus. Swallowing causes her pain and discomfort, the lawsuit states.
She and her daughter are asking for compensation for special and general damages, estimated at $1 million.
Einstein Bros. Bagels declined to comment.
A South Jordan woman’s esophagus was burned in 2014 after she drank Dickey’s Barbecue sweet tea that had been filled with lye, a toxic cleaning agent. The restaurant chain and the woman “amicably resolved all claims between them” without a lawsuit.
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