A shocked Wisconsin man is suing Olive Garden for allegedly serving him a rat’s leg in a bowl of minestrone.
Thomas Howie, 54, says he was dining with two friends when he made the stomach-turning discovery — at the eatery in Warren, Michigan, on March 11.
He claimed he felt a sharp object ‘sticking’ into his cheek – and was horrified when he spat out the spoon.
The culprit, he said, was a fur-covered claw, which he immediately photographed and showed to staff.
But he said employees disapproved of him and even mocked him at one point, where someone would say to him, “We don’t serve meat in our minestrone.”
He has filed a police report and taken the rat’s foot to the local police station, and has now filed a lawsuit seeking damages of more than $75,000. Olive Garden denies the allegations.
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A man in Wisconsin is suing Olive Garden for allegedly serving him a rat’s leg in a bowl of minestrone – claiming he suffered emotional distress after taking a bite of the fur-covered piece (seen here)
Thomas Howie, a 54-year-old from Warren, says he was eating with two friends when he made the stomach-turning discovery
“I took a bite, felt something sticking in the inside of my cheek, it felt like a needle,” Howie recalled of the ordeal. Fox affiliate WITI Monday in a sit-down interview with his lawyer. Days earlier, the couple filed suit in Macomb Circuit Court.
“I jumped and nearly choked myself,” the exasperated patron continued, before claiming that the claw had ripped the inside of his mouth.
“So when I chopped it up and realized it was in a napkin… My stomach felt like I was going to throw up in the restaurant. I was terrified.’
After he reportedly threw up on the restaurant floor, one of his friends asked for a manager, the accuser alleges, who reportedly responded by attempting to remove the claw-infested dish.
A second employee, also believed to be a manager, then responded to the call, offering jokes and snide remarks to the group instead of a solution, the indictment said.
That employee, apparently both surprised and dismissive of the discovery, joked at one point, “That’s funny. We don’t even put meat in minestrone,” the suit said.
It is then alleged that the foot – which Howie has kept in the freezer for months as “evidence” – left a cut on Howie’s mouth, prompting him to call the police before rushing to an urgent care facility.
The indictment, which was filed on August 18, further states that officers actually physically arrived at the Olive Garden location to investigate, and that several people gag at the sight of Howie’s hairy hurdle.
In a police report filed off the fact, first responders noted that the foot, which was still wrapped in the napkin, “appeared to have been chewed.”
The incident occurred at the eatery’s location in Warren, Michigan, on March 11 — and police were reportedly called to the eatery. They reportedly retch, like Howie, because of the stomach-churning sight
The lawsuit, filed Aug. 18, also alleges that the staff did not take Howie’s claims seriously — even joking about his discovery, saying they normally “don’t serve meat in their minestrone.”
After leaving the report with officers, Howie sought medical treatment at a nearby urgent care facility, the indictment said.
There, he was given a tetanus shot and prescribed antibiotics for the cut on his cheek, the lawsuit alleges — adding that a doctor identified the object as a rat’s leg.
Howie also got a much-needed mouthwash after chewing the unapproved appetizer, but adds that he still has a bad taste in his mouth after the ordeal.
His lawsuit and lawyers state that in the days following the incident, he had difficulty sleeping and eating, as well as vomiting, diarrhea and severe depression.
He and his lawyer Daniel Gwinn add that months later he still struggles with eating meat and relying on food served by others – and that this experience has turned him away from restaurants completely.
“The thought of even going to a restaurant right now is just repulsive,” he told Fox 6, adding that he has since suffered a stroke and needs ongoing medical care.
“I couldn’t sit still, couldn’t believe this was happening, it was devastating.”
He and his lawyer Daniel Gwinn add that months later he still struggles with eating meat and relying on food served by others – and that this experience has turned him away from restaurants completely. Their lawsuit, filed Friday, claims Howie is still in emotional pain from the incident
After filing the lawsuit last week, Gwinn told several media outlets that he is hopeful the food giant will reach an out-of-court settlement — despite the company questioning his client’s claims.
The incident harks back to a similar incident in New York that also allegedly occurred in March, in which a couple accused a popular Manhattan restaurant of leaving a dead rat in their soup.
Olive Garden, meanwhile, spoke out against the claims made in Howie’s lawsuit on Tuesday, while Gwinn told several media outlets he is hopeful the food giant will reach an out-of-court settlement.
They claim that immediately after receiving Howie’s claims in March, they conducted a health inspection and found no evidence that rats were or have been at the site.
In a statement, they called the Wisconsin man’s allegations questionable. “We have no reason to believe that this claim has any validity.”
Howie’s lawsuit — seeking damages for “tangible and immaterial damages” for mental anguish and emotional distress caused by the ordeal — is still pending.
The incident echoes a similar incident in New York that also happened in March, in which a couple accused a popular Manhattan restaurant of leaving a dead rat in their soup.
Eunice Lucero-Lee and husband Jason Lee also followed suit, against the since-closed Gammeeok in Midtown Manhattan, while also posting shocking videos and photos of the meal as alleged evidence.
The videos quickly went viral — and the 24-hour restaurant on 32nd Street between Fifth and Sixth Avenues was immediately closed by the Department of Health pending an investigation.
Months later, the eatery remains closed and the lawsuit is still pending.