Kyle V.
Google
We dined at this Ruth’s Chris location on the evening of 1/17, expecting a high-end, professional dining experience. Instead, our night ended with an emergency room visit due to a serious and preventable failure in allergen disclosure, food handling, and accountability.
Before ordering, we clearly informed our server that there was a nut allergy at the table. This was acknowledged. We relied on the restaurant—particularly one of this reputation—to properly guide us and disclose any dishes that contained nuts.
Despite this, my partner was served the sweet potato casserole without any disclosure that it contained pecans, a common and well-known allergen that is not visually obvious in the dish. After consuming the food, she suffered an allergic reaction severe enough to require immediate medical attention and an ER visit.
What followed made the situation even more concerning:
• The presence of pecans was never disclosed, despite a nut allergy being communicated
• After the allergic reaction was known, staff boxed the allergen-containing dish together with the rest of our food, causing cross-contamination
• Because of this, the entire meal had to be thrown away
• A second serving of the same dish—which we did not order—was brought to the table and encouraged to be eaten
• The situation was escalated to management, where accountability was notably lacking
When we later spoke with the General Manager, Justin Caldwell, the handling of the situation was deeply disappointing. Rather than acknowledging the failure to disclose a known allergen that resulted in a medical emergency, responsibility was repeatedly shifted onto us.
Mr. Caldwell offered a gift certificate worth roughly half the value of the meal and stated that the purpose of this certificate would be for us to “come back and correctly identify the allergen.” This implication was troubling, as we did disclose a nut allergy the first time, and the incident occurred because the restaurant failed to disclose that the dish contained pecans.
To further address the matter, we escalated the issue to corporate and spoke with Megan Cromwell, Director of Guest Relations. Unfortunately, she reiterated the same position as the general manager—maintaining that the restaurant was not responsible and again placing the burden on the guest rather than acknowledging the failure to disclose a known allergen that led to emergency medical care.
At no point was a full refund offered. Instead, both location management and corporate guest relations focused on technical distinctions and deflection, rather than the fact that a guest was sent to the ER due to an undisclosed allergen.
At a restaurant of this caliber, guests should not be expected to interrogate every dish for hidden ingredients after clearly stating a nut allergy. The ethical responsibility of a restaurant is to disclose known allergens, handle food safely, and take accountability when failures occur—not to minimize harm or suggest the guest failed to communicate correctly after a medical emergency.
This was not a minor inconvenience. It was a serious food safety failure, followed by dismissive and unfair handling at both the restaurant and corporate levels. Until meaningful changes are made to allergen disclosure practices, staff training, and accountability, I cannot recommend this location—especially to anyone with food allergies.
