Food poisoning twice - after eating at Essex Greene movie theater
I do have some food allergies, and it was not easy to pinpoint the cause, or even that it wasn't due to bad food. I'd suggest she try to reconstruct a food diary for these two days to see what else she might have ingested....not saying it isn't the food at the theater, but it takes some detective work to figure out exactly what you're dealing with in a situation like this. Might it be something environmental that could affect her? (cleaning solution, something like that) Can you think of other instances of her vomiting without a specific cause? Has she ever been to this theater without eating and gotten/not gotten sick? Has she ever eaten there before and not gotten sick?
It's like a giant puzzle to figure it out, but I'm sure she's not happy about this situation.
Did the other kids she went with eat the same food as Sproutlette, or different stuff?
It's been a bit tough to deconstruct from the kids perspective. When I start asking detail questions, the kids seem to get fuzzy on things -- probably because they don't want to seem like they 'did something wrong', or they just weren't paying attention. So can't tell.
No other instances of vomiting without illness that I can think of. (I can't remember the last instance... maybe 6 months ago with an extended virus or strep).
I *think* they went to this theater before without an issue. But can't remember when that was either.
mammabear said:
I have two friends (adults) who have had the same thing happen. :/
Why take chances? If you have an option enjoy the movie but avoid the food.
food poisoning can start up to a few days after exposure...and causes excessive vomiting/diarrhea for hours..even a day or more....if she didn't vomit repeatedly--its not food poisoning
It appears that onset and duration can vary widely depending on the type of bacteria that caused it:
http://www.fda.gov/food/resourcesforyou/consumers/ucm103263.htm
OMG--I went there last Saturday evening, had the popcorn, and the same thing happened! I have had it there before, and didn't get sick. Maybe it's a particular batch of cooking oil.
I think maybe someone needs to call the Health Department. That place could use a good pop inspection. 
valley_girl said:
OMG--I went there last Saturday evening, had the popcorn, and the same thing happened! I have had it there before, and didn't get sick. Maybe it's a particular batch of cooking oil.
Sproutlette believed the popcorn was the culprit the first time (ETA: Which was also last Saturday, but in the afternoon)... which I thought was unlikely... but now sounds plausible. Thanks for the info!
PeggyC said:
I think maybe someone needs to call the Health Department. That place could use a good pop inspection.
Sent a message to W.O. Health Dept. (Not sure if that's the right one to contact?).
We were there last Sat. afternoon (7/18)-- three of us had popcorn and didn't have any problems.
We trust the chicken fingers there and haven't had a problem. We primarily go for the beer, though.
so apparently, some forms don't appear for a week or 2....but still they cause repeated symptoms for hours, even days...if its just once instance of vomiting, it could be that the food was a little bad/spoiled..but not true food poisoning.
Either of those situations is not desirable for a company that is selling food.
Two unrelated people ate the popcorn and vomited.
Three people ate the popcorn and did not vomit.
Did the people on this thread who vomited use the "butter," how about the people who did not get sick?
ETA: I am not familiar with the theater in question, but the last time I went to the movies they had multiple "butter" stations, so is it possible one is contaminated with something while another is not?
Very possible, but I don't know that it's possible to find out who had what in Sproutlette's case, since the kids have been vague about the details of what they ate.
I was called back by the W.O. Health inspector. The inspector didn't find anything amiss at the theater, and had recently inspected it on two occasions-one of which was the Saturday that Sproutlette's (and valley-girl's) food-borne illness occurred.
Also, the W.O. health dept did not receive any other complaints, so that's the end of the line. Not sure what happened to the popcorn last Saturday night, but whatever it was went undetected as an issue.
Worked in a restaurant in my youth that never cleaned their ice machine until clumps of mold started falling into the ice & showing up in drinks (still sends shudders down my spine). But in a movie theater, I would suspect the ice machine more than popcorn or chicken, and could certainly see how some but not all would suffer.
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2014/06/16/ice-cubes-gross_n_5475301.html
Good theory - but strangely enough, Sproutlette is not crazy about ice, and claims 'water with no ice' was ordered. Who knows.
:shrug
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Sproutlette went to Essex Green dine-in theater last weekend. Had burger & popcorn. Threw up 7 hours later, and seemed fine the next day.
Then yesterday, went with different friends to a different movie at the same theater (so it's now 5 days later). Avoided the previous foods, and had chicken fingers & fries. Once again, threw up 7 hours later.
All friends were fine. Sproutlette has no food allergies that we're aware of.
Should I call the health department on them, or does it seem likely that they cook with something that is an allergen? It seems like a strange (and icky) coincidence.