A couple received an unwanted surprise when they bought some doughnuts at a Dunkin’ Donuts in Florida.
When Magela and Rodrigo Esquivel stopped at a Dunkin’ drive-thru in Hollywood, Florida, they saw that the employee who served them had a napkin wrapped around her finger. Later, Magela noticed that there were red stains on the napkins she’d been given.
“I'm like, ‘What is that?’ I'm like, ‘That is not jelly,’” she told Miami station WPLG Local 10. “I grabbed the bag because it had the rest of the napkins and I see another red stain on the bag and I'm like, ‘Hold on.’ So we pulled off to the side of the road and I'm like, ‘This is blood. This is not jelly.’”
The couple then looked at their own hands for any cuts before going back to the eatery. They drove up to the drive-thru again and filmed themselves speaking to the employee. “My doughnut was all full of blood after I started eating it. My napkins, my bag is all full of blood,” Magela says.
From the video, it looks like the worker is holding a bloody napkin—and she explains that she cut herself and was trying to wash up. “I would never,” she starts to say before Magela cuts her off, reiterating that her bag and doughnut were “full of blood.” Magela apparently had to stop recording the video because she needed to throw up.
From the photos that Magela shared online, saying both items were “full of blood” was hyperbolic. A couple of red, fingerprint-size stains can be seen on the white bag. Still: yikes.
The employee offered to give them more doughnuts, but the couple said no. After, they went to the hospital to get tested. “What if we are infected with HIV, hepatitis, anything?" Rodrigo told the station.
The Esquivels will have to endure two more sets of blood tests during the next year before it’s known that they weren’t exposed to any disease. The owner of the Dunkin’ Donuts location attempted to give the couple a $25 gift card, which they declined. After speaking with Local 10, Dunkin’ Donuts corporate office offered to pay for their medical bills and blood tests. The couple has also hired a lawyer.
“Upon learning of this incident at the Dunkin’ restaurant in Hollywood, FL, we immediately contacted the franchisee who owns and operates this location. He informed us that the crew member had experienced a paper cut,” a Dunkin spokesperson told Vice. “He reiterated the proper food safety and quality standards protocol with the crew member, including the necessity of wearing gloves, with the crew member. The franchisee also confirmed he reached out to the guest to resolve the matter and apologize for the negative experience.”
