Saturday, November 29, 2008

A letter to Mcdonalds Singapore

Update: As of Monday night, Mcdonalds has not gotten back to me. Not an email, not a call. Wanted to send an email to the authorities to look into the matter but I honestly don't know which jurisdiction food safety is under - Agri-Food and Veterinary Authority, National Environmental Agency or Health Sciences Authority? I'd be glad if you could help me get this message to the masses.

i.e. if you have a weak stomach, AVOID MEGA MCSPICY AT ALL COSTS.

Forumers in Hardwarezone have been experiencing the same problem with their Mega Mcspicys.

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Hi, I had a Mega Mcspicy for lunch on 28 November 2008 at around 1.30pm, from your Junction 8 branch.

The service was excellent - I have nothing but praises for it. However the food gave me diarrhoea.

There's something in your spice mixture that not only stings the tongue, but also the stomach, then the intestines. I felt horrible the whole day after lunch, with this burning feeling in my tummy gnawing at me. It was as though the chewed and digested Mega Mcspicy burned whatever part of my body it was in contact with.

This cumulated into several bad episodes of very painful diarrhoea at midnight. Being medically trained, I knew that it wasn't harmful yet so I did not see a doctor.

A quick search on Google shows that I'm not the only one.

Google search of 'mcspicy diarrhoea'

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Some quotes:
"I’m suffering from diarrhoea now. I should thank the McSpicy I had yesterday in school’s Mcdonalds. I don’t know why, but everytime after I finished the McSpicy, I have this tinkling hot feeling in my stomach. "

"Weak stomach my love!!
Mcspicy also will kena food poisoning =X
Stupid mcspicy chicken! Spoil my saturday night!"

"The first night I had McSpicy burger at 4am. By which I had diarrhoea shortly after."

"stupidly had a mcspicy for lunch (when the last time i had it, i had diarrhoea ), and my stomach felt alll weird. like the insides were burning."

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Your company should really take a look at this. Whatever it is that you have in the Mcspicy spice mix is causing quite a few people the same symptoms of burning discomfort and diarrhoea.

Not to mention, the spicy burn really does detract from the enjoyment of the otherwise-tasty chicken pieces in the Mega Mcspicy.

It would be nice if you could look into this seriously - issues regarding food safety and health should not be overlooked - and take appropriate action.

If there are any updates regarding this problem, please keep me informed!

Also, is there a way to order a non-spicy version of a Mega Mcspicy? I have never liked spicy food in the first place, and neither do some people I know.

Thank you.

17 comments:

Pkchukiss said...

Talk about horrible experience! The turn-around time for me is usually approximately 8 hours after I finish off a normal McSpicy, but for the Mega McSpicy, the diarrhoea came in a record breaking 6 hours!

Not to mention that the Mega McSpicy is the old McSpicy with a crazy price hike!

Anonymous said...

there is mc chicken....

Anonymous said...

strange, i felt ok after eating McSpicy. lovin it!

Anonymous said...

I had Mega McSpicy too for supper and had an upset stomach for the whole of the next day.

Mine was a home delivery.

At first I thought it was the mayonnaise (which I dipped my fries into) that turned bad in during the delivery.

But having seen so many complaint cases, it could be otherwise.

Anonymous said...

I also kenna! I thought I was the only one!

Anonymous said...

Used to be "McSpicy Double" when launched. Cost abt $3.95
Then they removed one patty and called it 'McSpicy', but claim the new patty is bigger. Cost abt $3.95
Now, they add back another patty and call it 'Mega McSpicy'. Cost abt $5.35
GST to help the poor anyone?

nartz said...

actually, great that you mentioned it. i thought i was the only poor person suffering from this. the single mcspicy is enough to send me to the toilet many many times.

could it be we cant take the chilli? i know sometimes diarrhea occurs when too much chilli is ingested or the chilli is too strong.

Anonymous said...

you guys just have weak stomachs.

zzz

Anonymous said...

I think it's just too spicy for some people lah. When I first had McSpicy, my tummy felt warm all day too but after getting used to it, I don't have an issue anymore.

Anonymous said...

blame everyone but urself in which this case.. ur own body.. eat something else and quit whining..

Anonymous said...

Don't eat it if you can't handle it. I love the McSpicy double and hope the promo doesn't go away anytime soon. I've had 4 of those already and I haven't experience any discomfort.

Please stick to the "tamer" flavoured burgers, people. Stop blaming the awesome spiciness of the burger.

Anonymous said...

i'd like to think that McSpicy now is just a spicy McChicken.

M

Anonymous said...

I'm a regular chilli eater and mcspicy has always given me problems (zinger doesn't).

Unknown said...

Everyone I know says a similar thing (including chilli lovers like me)!

Can't stop eating them tho. Lovin' it going in, but guaranteed to burn the other end in the morning! X-o

No choice - price worth paying (but I do think twice about what I'm meant to be doing the next morning before I go the McSpicy!!)

Anonymous said...

I'm able to take spicy food, and I know that my diarrhoea had nothing to do with intolerance to the spiciness of the burger. Diarrhoea is one thing, having the runs for 2 days until clear water passes through is another. There is a name for this: food poisoning. Dehydration and nausea are signs of something worse than just spice intolerance, ask my doctor :)

(this is a case for AVA to investigate, letters to Macs will mostly be ignored unless the media and authorities are copied in it)

Anonymous said...

Dear Ms Lee,

We are sorry to hear of your unpleasant experience with our Mega McSpicy. At McDonald’s, we take all feedback on our food very seriously and will not, at any time, compromise on the stringent food safety standards in place.

Since receiving your email on 29 November, Mr Raymond Tan, Business Consultant for McDonald’s Bishan Junction 8 has been attempting to reach you on your mobile to no avail. Nonetheless, because of the strong stance we take on food safety, we have sent samples of our McSpicy for testing and would very much like to speak to you to further aid us in our investigation.

We would very much appreciate it if you could contact Mr Raymond Tan at 6462 0800, if you do not hear from him today.


Claudia Yeo
Communications Department
McDonald’s Restaurants

Pkchukiss said...

Wow, looks like you got a reply from McDees. Le Internet rules!