Toddler served alcohol instead of apple juice at Michigan Applebee's; has BAC of .10

[RamboLiberal]

A 15-month-old was rushed to the hospital in a Detroit suburb after he was served alcohol instead of apple juice in his sippy cup.

Taylor Dill-Reese told local television station WJBK that her son was happily sipping what he thought was juice when he began acting rather strange.

"He was saying hi and bye to the walls," she said. "He eventually laid his head down on the table and we thought maybe he was just sleepy."

But when she tasted the apple juice, it turned out to have very low fruit content – it was actually a margarita, she claimed.

http://www.nydailynews.com/news/national/2011/04/10/2011-04-10_toddler_served_alcohol_instead_of_apple_juice_at_michigan_applebees_has_bac_of_1.html

[Warren DeMontague]

1. Jesus.

That's horrible.

[RaleighNCDUer]

2. Let me guess - last time that baby was at that server's table it was

squalling and crying the whole time.

While totally against what happened, jeeze, folks, DON"T take your toddler out to real restaurants. Get a sitter or go to fucking chuckee cheeze.

[titaniumsalute]

6. LOL...yeah sure. My kids always ate out with us at nice places

Chuck E Cheese is a cesspool of bacteria and germs. I was, however, a responsible parent who didn't let my kids disrupt others around me.

[Lars39]

8. Applebee's is a real restaurant?

The last one I was at had tv's every where, waitstaff wearing jeans.

[dmallind]

25. And that stops it being "real" how?

Casually dressed waitstaff and TVs impact food and drink in what precise way?

[Lars39]

26. Same way those high chairs scattered around the restaurant do, I guess.

[NeedleCast]

41. Your definition of restaurant is not in line with the majority

And I say that as a person who thinks Applebee's is pretty boring. However, claiming they are not a restaurant because they are family friendly (and use a very generic, very profitable profile) is a little silly.

[Lars39]

45. The above poster's expectations of zero children in such a restaurant is laughable.

And I addressed it as such. :shrug:

[guardian]

44. Snob alert! n/t

[Lars39]

46. Real restaurants tend to have tablecloths and not a tv in sight.

You might want to explore the possibilities near you. Applebees is more on par with a glorified fast food restaurant.

[WildEyedLiberal]

9. Yes, because Applebee's is such a fucking fancy establisment

I love how you managed to invent an excuse for this piece of shit waiter to give a toddler alcohol poisoning :eyes:

[Name removed]

18. Deleted message

Message removed by moderator. Click here to review the message board rules.

[1monster]

15. Applebee's is a real restaurant? Supposedly, it is a FAMILY restaurant.

Why don't you go to a restaurant that is for adults only?

I don't have any toddlers, but I get really sick of people wanting to make all children into monsters just because a few have a bad night once in a while.

You don't want to eat with children? Go spend the extra dollars it will take to go to a restaurant that does not have high chairs.

[buddysmellgood]

16. It was an applebees.

[RaleighNCDUer]

19. yeah. so?

It is a sit down restaurant where you order from a menu, which serves alcohol, and you never see a spork - that makes it a 'real' restaurant.

Or do they serve on paper, now? I've not been in one in 20 years.

[Lars39]

20. And they also have high chairs.

[buddysmellgood]

21. Its market is families. Families include children. I can go over that again if you need.

[tammywammy]

23. It's a family restaurant. n/t

[Webster Green]

24. Real restaurant?

Applebee's?

:rofl:

[lostnfound]

28. Some over-the-top hating going on there. Don't you ever ENJOY

the sight of a toddler? Plenty of people get a thrill out of seeing them out and about in, you know, "real places". It brings a smile to many hearts who are not so dead set against them on sight. Jeez. Applebees??

[blueamy66]

39. We went to IHOP yesterday for breakfast with my great nephews

They are NOT well behaved, but they are toddlers....can't expect more from them.

But, I managed to keep them busy stacking jelly containers. When they were done eating, I took them out front where they ran in circles until the bill was paid and Mommy and the rest came out.

There was a really nice older gentleman who just loved our Bentley Joe....brought a smile to my face.

Anyway, I can see both sides of the kids in restaurants argument.....don't know the solution....

[Dorian Gray]

31. Since when

has Applebees counted as a "real" restaurant?

[Ian David]

3. Good thing he wasn't driving. n/t

[Shagbark Hickory]

12. Rimshot n/t

[MNBrewer]

4. hope he wasn't the designated driver.

I smell a scam.

[Shagbark Hickory]

13. Rimshot n/t

[angstlessk]

5. One wonders if they added alcohol to sue...I am cynic..I admit...but

the only person at the table served alcohol was the toddler????

[Pithlet]

7. I wonder the same thing.

I just don't think they'd touch the sippy cup. If they do refills on a kids cups that come from the restaurant, they'll often ask you to take off the lid yourself, so I really don't see them doing that. But either way I can't imagine not smelling that. I'm very suspicious.

[Vinnie From Indy]

10. Yeppers!

I smell a scam as well!

[Dorian Gray]

33. It could be

if not, this is a totally egregious and difficult to make mistake.

[Terra Alta]

17. I agree.

Something sure smells fishy here...

[tammywammy]

22. Yep, this smells fishy

Why would a bartender fill a kids cup with alcohol? And add to it the fact that the kid kept drinking it.

[Viking12]

32. That's the part that has me wondering too,

Unless it was a super fruity variety of margarita, no kid would drink it. If it was a super fruity margarita, then it would be obvious it wasn't apple juice.

[AngryOldDem]

37. Apparently the mom is 18.

Good Morning America had clip of her pointing out that she and whoever she was with were too young to be served alcohol, so there is no excuse for what happened. The restaurant is blaming a mislabeled bottle at the bar. Just a case of someone in a rush and not paying attention.

[Generic Brad]

11. How fortunate he was not their designated driver

:beer:

[Shagbark Hickory]

14. Rimshot n/t

[RamboLiberal]

27. Happened at a Applebee's 4 years ago as well

And wow - I posted that one as well - no wonder I was feeling deja vu.

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=105x6619544

Kim Mayorga was confused when her 2-year-old started making funny faces and pushing away the apple juice he had ordered at Applebee's. The explanation came when she opened the lid of the sippy cup and was hit by the smell of tequila and Triple Sec.

The restaurant staff accidentally gave Julian Mayorga a margarita Monday. He grew drowsy and started vomiting a few hours later and was rushed to the hospital.

"I wasn't going to make a big deal about it," the mother told the Contra Costa Times on Thursday, "but then he got sick."

The apple juice and margarita mix were stored in identical plastic bottles, and the manager mistakenly grabbed the margarita container to pour the boy's drink, said Randy Tei, vice president for Apple Bay East Inc., which owns the franchise restaurant and nine other Applebee's in the San Francisco Bay area.

Denver Post link no longer active.

[karynnj]

36. Thanks for this - it actually likely has the explanation for this

{div class = "excerpt"]
The apple juice and margarita mix were stored in identical plastic bottles

[Codeine]

29. Riiiight.

I smell a rat. A nice big lawsuit-related rat.

[Dorian Gray]

30. Holy SHIT

I'd be PISSED as hell. And this will make me taste my child's sippy cup before she does if we ever get it filled at a restaurant.

[GoCubsGo]

34. This is why restaurants should never fill sippy cups.

If the kid wants juice, bring it in a glass, and let the parent pour it into the sippy cup themselves. I cannot believe that is not standard procedure.

[Shagbark Hickory]

40. Are you kidding me? I'm surprised they don't prohibit you from bringing your own

and then charge $10 for it to be refilled.

[seabeyond]

35. from what i read in another article, premade marqaritas in same type container and next to apple jui

juice

grabbing the wrong container in a rush makes more sense than just mixing and putting into toddler cup.

i couldnt see it either until reading that.

poster #27 has an article in his post

[Skidmore]

38. GMA just reported that this is not the first time this restaurant has done this.

There appears to be a problem there.

[Dorian Gray]

43. That's crazy

especially when serving children. I'm surprised the child liked the taste of the margarita, though. (Shows how sweet Applebees makes their drinks, too.)

glad that there was no permanent harm to the child.

[Xithras]

47. Remember that at many chains, ALL non-soda/coffee orders are filled at the bar.

Applebees does it, but it's common at many chain restaurants. Orders for soda, coffee, and water get filled by the waitstaff, but anything more "complicated" (anything that involves opening a bottle) gets done at the bar. From apple juice to chocolate milk, the non-fountain drinks are made right alongside the bloody mary's and jack and cokes.

Accidents happen. Always check your kids drink.

[guitar man]

42. "And what was your child's first sentence?"

... hmm, let me see...as I recall it was "Enough?...hic...I'll tell YOU when I've had enough!..hic..BUUURP!"

:silly: :hide: