US judge dismisses $100,000 suit over spiciness of New York taqueria’s sauce | New York
A German tourist’s attempt to seek $100,000 in damages from a New York City taqueria whose salsa he found too spicy failed after a federal judge dismissed the case.
In his complaint filed in October 2024, German citizen Faycal Manz filed a complaint against Los Tacos No. 1 in Times Square while visiting New York two months ago. He said it stopped at 1.
Manz claimed that he bought three tacos there and then took advantage of the offerings at the restaurant’s self-service salsa bar.
“I started putting a lot of these sauces on my tacos because I had no idea how dangerous these sauces could be or what ingredients went into the sauces,” Manz wrote in his filing.
He claimed that after eating the taco, he experienced unpleasant symptoms such as burning in his mouth and tongue, increased heart rate, nausea and blisters on the tongue. He then returned to the hotel, where he took medication for diarrhea, acid reflux and stomach cramps, Manz said.
“There was absolutely no warning,” he wrote in his complaint, noting that he had a history of gastrointestinal issues and generally avoided spicy foods.
But in mid-February, U.S. district judge Dale Ho dismissed Manz’s lawsuit, writing that the plaintiff’s “claims are legally invalid.”
“Mr. Manz has made no allegation that Los Tacos negligently served overly spicy salsa in Times Square,” the judge wrote.
Manz did not show that he was unable to obtain information about the spice level of the salsa before eating it, Ho said.
“Manz admits that he never asked anyone, whether a customer or a Los Tacos employee, about the contents of the salsa bar before putting a large amount into each of his tacos,” Ho wrote.
The judge also noted that Manz acknowledged that he was “particularly prone to spice-related disorders” and generally avoided them.
“A reasonable person with Mr. Manz’s characteristics could easily have discovered that the salsa at Los Tacos was spicy,” Ho wrote.
Ho noted that Los Tacos touts that Mexican food, especially salsa, is “mostly spicy.”
“Actually,” Ho added, “when it comes to salsa, it’s usually the spice that really matters.”
Court records show Manz filed several other lawsuits related to his trip to the United States in August 2024.
A man seeking $10 million has accused a New Jersey Walmart of discrimination by requiring a US phone number for Wi-Fi login. He also requested another $10 million from New York police in response to a reported street attack.
The Walmart case was also dismissed. And last week he dropped the case involving the police response. New York Times.
