'I lost my appetite': Cheeseburger served with waiver at Toronto restaurant
A visitor from the U.S. got more than they asked for at a Toronto hotel restaurant when they ordered a cheeseburger on Monday night that was served with a waiver on the side.
“I was flabbergasted,” the visitor said in a post to Reddit that has since gone viral on the platform’s Toronto page and garnered more than 500 comments.
- Download our app to get local alerts on your device
- Get the latest local updates right to your inbox
The visitor, who asked to be identified by their username Reit007, ordered the burger to be cooked medium and told CTV News Toronto they had already started eating when the server handed them a waiver.
“I already had my first bite but stopped eating and did not sign the waiver. I was shocked to be honest with you,” they said in an interview.
Reit007 said the server explained that because the kitchen at the Hilton Toronto Airport Hotel & Suites always cooks their burgers well-done, they should sign the waiver first.
According to the waiver, the “guest hereby waives and releases any rights, actions or claims against Hilton Toronto Airport Hotel & Suites…for any liabilities and damages, including any food-borne illnesses and death arising out of or in connection with the guest’s use of its own food or consumption of products not provided by Hilton Toronto Airport.”
“I lost my appetite,” Reit007 told CTV News Toronto. “Simply because I felt they did not have confidence in food they are offering.”
A picture of a cheeseburger served with a waiver is seen in this image. (Reddit.com/Reit007)
While the hotel chain doesn’t typically hand these waivers out, a Hilton spokesperson told CTV News Toronto that the chain adheres to all of Ontario's food safety laws.
“When guests request a cooking temperature for meat that is below the minimum required, our hotel provides a waiver as an additional food safety measure with language consistent with what you might see printed at the bottom of restaurant menus,” a statement read.
According to the province’s food safety guide, ground beef should be cooked to 71 C or 160 F to "ensure adequate cooking of the meats and reduce the chance of bacterial survival."
WHY THE WAIVER?
Although the sight of a waiver beside a meal came as a shock to the hundreds of comments following Reit007’s post, one food safety professor says the form is not a terrible idea.
“I think it's forward thinking by the restaurant because a lot of restaurants will just give you what you want,” Keith Warriner told CTV News Toronto in an interview. “[The waiver] is a protection mechanism, they’re saying, ‘yeah, this beef potentially could have E. coli in it.’”
Warriner, who worked as a chef in the U.K. before becoming a professor of food science at the University of Guelph, said E. coli 0157 is much more rare these days, with a prevalence of roughly 0.01 per cent.
But back in the ‘90s, that number was closer to two per cent.
“And the reason why I go back to the ‘90s is because there was a famous E. coli outbreak associated with Jack in the box,” he said referring to the 1993 incident that left four people dead and 732 infected across four states in the U.S., forever changing the way meat is processed south of the border.
“So obviously with all these outbreaks in the US, which is very litigation trigger happy, if you make somebody ill, you're gonna pay for it.”
Warriner said Canada isn’t as litigious as the United States, but there are instances in this country where meat producers have had to pay up due to contaminated products, most notably the $27-million Maple Leaf settlement following the Listeria-linked deaths of least 20 people in 2008.
In this case, Warriner said he understands why the form may have been issued, albeit a rare practice in this county.
“In Canada, I don't think it would have stood up [in court], but with the waiver form, that gives a degree of protection,” he said.
If you do contract E. coli after eating contaminated ground beef, Warriner explained the experience is “horrendous.”
“If you're lucky, you might just get gastroenteritis and nothing else. But it could lead on to what we call hemolytic uremic syndrome, which produces a sugar-like toxin and causes kidney failure. And when you get kidney failure, can you imagine all this fluid accumulates in your body and it’s got nowhere to go?”
Asked if diners who prefer an undercooked burger should think twice before their next order, Warriner said it’s better to be safe -- and have it fully cooked -- than sorry.
“It’s just not worth the risk,” he said.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
'A beautiful soul': Funeral held for baby boy killed in wrong-way crash on Highway 401
A funeral was held on Wednesday for a three-month-old boy who died after being involved in a wrong-way crash on Highway 401 in Whitby last week.
Police handcuff man trying to enter Drake's Toronto mansion
Toronto police say a man was taken into custody outside Drake's Bridle Path mansion Wednesday afternoon after he tried to gain access to the residence.
U.S. presidential candidate RFK Jr. had a brain worm, has recovered, campaign says
Independent U.S. presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr. had a parasite in his brain more than a decade ago, but has fully recovered, his campaign said, after the New York Times reported about the ailment.
Ontario Provincial Police arrest 64 suspects in child sexual exploitation investigation
Ontario Provincial Police say 64 suspects are facing a combined 348 charges in connection with a series of child sexual exploitation investigations that spanned the province.
Pfizer agrees to settle more than 10K lawsuits over Zantac cancer risk: Bloomberg News
Pfizer has agreed to settle more than 10,000 lawsuits about cancer risks related to the now discontinued heartburn drug Zantac, Bloomberg News reported on Wednesday, citing people familiar with the deal.
Quebec premier defends new museum on Quebecois nation after Indigenous criticism
Quebec Premier Francois Legault is defending his comments about a new history museum after he was accused by a prominent First Nations group of trying to erase their history.
Blind Sask. boy heading to international braille competition hopes to increase accessibility for visually impaired
A Saskatchewan boy who qualified for an international braille competition in Los Angeles next month hopes he can inspire change in his home province.
'A step forward': New screening criteria for sperm donors takes effect
Canadians looking to grow their families with the assistance of sperm or egg donations should soon have more options for donors as the federal health agency does away with longstanding restrictions criticized as discriminatory.
What is whooping cough and should Canadians be concerned as Europe declares outbreak?
There is currently a whooping cough epidemic in Europe, with 10 times as many cases compared to the previous two years. While an outbreak has not been declared nationwide in Canada, whooping cough is regularly detected in the country.