photo credit: gsloan/Flickr
A woman decided to file a lawsuit against pan-Asian food chain, P.F. Changs, over the prices of the gluten free menu options. She claims that the prices violate her "Americans with Disabilities Act." She states that the additional dollar surcharge is discriminatory against those who suffer from Celiac disease.
Anna Marie Phillips hopes to bring a class-action lawsuit against the restaurant, "on behalf of diners with Celiac disease or gluten intolerance." The lawsuit states that more than 3,000 people in 39 states have been affected by the additional surcharge. She also filed an injunction against the restaurant in order to stop them from continuing to push the surcharge. Phillps also seeks restitution for all surcharges that have been paid, and she is also requesting compensatory damage.
Oh brother!
My Two Cents:
Folks, I as a Celiac, am not a happy camper with the prices we pay to dine out. However, I don't think it is serious enough to file a lawsuit against restaurants such as PF Changs.
First off, does Phillips KNOW how much it costs to prepare a gluten free option? The kitchen staff have to be as careful as possible when prepping (some even have to go to a seperate kitchen). Also, ingredients can be quite expensive. The restaurant has to cover the costs somehow. It is not like droves of people come in everyday asking for a gluten free option. It can be pricey to keep these items on the menu.
I, for one, am so grateful to have so many chain restaurants providing options for our community. I am more than okay with paying the extra surcharge for my food.
I completely understand Anna Marie Phillips' frustration, and I know newly diagnosed Celiacs may think the prices are a slap in the face, but you need to think about it from an economical point of view. You also have to think about it from a culinary point of view. It's not like chefs learned about GF cooking in culinary school. I think it's been only within the past few years where people are learning how to cook GF. 10, 20, 30 or more years ago, no one knew what Celiac or GF was, unless you had a relative with the disease.
As for economics, think about the prices we have to pay for our groceries. Now, think about what restaurants have to pay to purchase the same groceries for their menus. There you go.
Do these prices suck? Yes. Folks, we have to just deal with it. There aren't enough of us out there for restaurants to lower the prices. If restaurants had all of us (Celiacs and non-Celiacs) pay the same amount, a lot of them would go out of business. Restaurant staff have to make money too.
I hear about these lawsuits all the time. Even though I understand the frustration that these people are going through, my heart really does go out to the restaurant staff. They need to earn a living too.
Fellow Celiacs, think back 4 or 5 years ago. Think back even longer than that. How many restaurants offered options for our community? Almost NONE of them. Isn't it worth the extra surcharge to be able to go out to eat with our loved ones and have an amazing night? What more do you want out of society? Do you want to go back to 10 and 20 years ago when we didn't have as many options? I sure as hell don't! We need to stop complaining and just be happy with what we have. If we keep on complaining, restaurants are going to continue giving us a hard time. Some of these restaurants will probably end up saying, "F*** it. Get rid of the options altogether! Why should we cater to a bunch of brats?"
I don't know if Phillips is a newly-diagnosed Celiac, but these prices are something that you just get used to. If she doesn't like it, she can stay home and make her own meals.
PF Changs, just so you know, this Celiac is grateful that you offer gluten free options. I am more than okay to pay an extra dollar so I can dine out with my loved ones. I hope that this incident doesn't make you believe that all of us are like that. As someone who has grown up around Celiac disease and GF food all her life, I remember what it is like to be without these options. I know I'm going to get shot in the foot for saying what I'm about to say, but, there is no greater time than now to be a Celiac. With all the options we have available to us, we will no longer go without.
Anyways, what do you all think of this lawsuit? Do you think she has a case? Or so you think she is bringing more bad press to our community?
