South MS casino cafe dish sickened a customer who wound up in emergency room, lawsuit says
A Hinds County resident became so sick after eating a chicken entree at Hard Rock Cafe Biloxi that he had to go to the emergency room, a recently filed lawsuit says.
James C. Simmons filed the lawsuit in Harrison County Circuit Court against Hard Rock Cafe International Inc. and unidentified agents.
The lawsuit says Simmons ate in the casino resort’s Biloxi cafe in March 2022. Simmons selected and ate a chicken entree, says the lawsuit, filed by Tamekia R. Goliday of Jackson.
After the meal, the lawsuit says, Simmons “began experiencing severe abdominal pain, nausea and vomiting.”
The pain was so intense that he went to the nearby emergency room at what was then Merit Health Biloxi, where he was diagnosed with salmonella gastroenteritis and prescribed nausea medication.
Lawsuit seeks damages
In his lawsuit, Simmons seeks up to $74,000 in compensation and punitive damages.
Hard Rock breached its implied warranty by serving him chicken unfit for human consumption, the lawsuit says. He also accuses the cafe of gross negligence, saying its agents knew, or should have known, that the chicken contained salmonella and prevented customers from being contaminated.
Hard Rock Cafe has not yet had time to respond to the lawsuit, but is reviewing it.
Meanwhile, a company representative emailed a statement to the Sun Herald. It said:
“Hard Rock Cafe takes food safety and guest well-being very seriously. In fact, our health and sanitation practices are among the most rigorous in the industry, inclusive of third-party health and food safety inspection audits.
“We strictly enforce our protocols to ensure that every guest enjoys a safe and exceptional dining experience at all of our restaurants, and this is further reflected at Hard Rock Cafe Biloxi by our ‘A’ rating by the Mississippi State Department of Health Food Establishment Inspection Report in 2022, 2023, 2024, and today. “
