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Drink Order Mix-Up: Toddler Gets Buzzed on Margarita in Sippy Cup at Michigan Applebee’s

WJBK-TV:

MADISON HEIGHTS, Mich. (WJBK) – A big scare for an Oak Park family, their toddler was accidentally served alcohol in a kids meal at Applebee’s. After a few swigs from his sippy cup, the 15-month-old boy needed a ride to the hospital. Taylor Dill-Reese says her son started acting strangely after drinking what she thought was apple juice. So, she tasted it and discovered the cup contained an alcoholic margarita mix.

The incident allegedly happened at 4:30pm Friday at the Applebee’s on 14 Mile Rd. After being checked out by doctors, the family learned the boy’s blood alcohol level was .10 — over the legal limit for an adult driver.

“Nobody at the table ordered alcoholic drinks,” said Dill-Reese. “So, he definitely shouldn’t have received one.”

Comments (115)

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  • Justin Hale
    Posted on April 11, 2011 at 5:13am

    @everyone who thinks the bartender could have made a margarita for this child

    I have never worked at a bar where the margarita mix had an alcohol content. Places like that would most likely sell “Virgin” cocktails. The only thing I could imagine that would link the staff to this event would be that there was some drunk patron that keep spilling thier drink and the staff wanted to play a joke on them, so they put the margarita in the sippy cup to get a laugh. Then one of the servers must have mistaked it for thier order and brought it to the wrong table.

    Report Post »  
  • CHOW
    Posted on April 11, 2011 at 3:45am

    A few things. First off, I have worked behind a bar for over 25 years. So I know a thing or two concerning what is supposed to happen. I would never pour anything that resembles a drink [alcoholic or otherwise] into a ‘sippy cup’ container. EVER. The first question I would ask, as a service professional, is whether the container [sippy cup] is even properly washed before my employer is handed the liability concerning the child’s well being. The fact is, if this is how it had happened, the bartender would have poured the drink into a company glass [one which the sanitation was not in question] and then had it served. If the parent would have wished for the child to drink from the ‘sippy cup’, they would have had to introduce the contents into the ‘sippy cup’ then. Frankly, this does not pass the smell test.
    \

    Report Post » CHOW  
    • BigMG
      Posted on April 12, 2011 at 12:31am

      Agreed. Having held a lqr license as well, you never, ever, mix a drink and then transfer it to another container. What you make is exactly what gets served.

      She probably didn’t have any spare fingers lying around to put in the chili…

      Report Post » BigMG  
  • JediKnight
    Posted on April 11, 2011 at 2:48am

    Don’t most restaurants give kids actual boxed juice? I can‘t recall a single one I’ve been to where a kids meal (especially for a toddler) didn’t come with a box of apple or orange juice.

    I guess if they ordered an orange juice on the side, but as LB stated, why would they even go to the bar for that if no one at the table ordered an alcoholic beverage?

    Report Post »  
  • LB
    Posted on April 11, 2011 at 2:27am

    In restaurants I have worked in the past, if you do not have an order for an alcoholic beverage you don’t go to the bar, the server gets it at a different location themselves. Sounds fishy to me. Even if it was unmarked marg. mix the person filling the cup would have seen the distinct color difference. You have to look to fill cup/glass. I see a scam.

    Report Post » LB  
  • sickdog
    Posted on April 11, 2011 at 1:55am

    I am surprised by how many people can’t figure out how easily this could have happened. Most restaurants, especially chain restaurants, will have pre mixed basic drinks, and Margaritas are almost always one of them. They are kept in the same kind of containers that all of the juices are kept. It would be very easy to pick up the wrong one. For people to think that this was done on purpose is ridiculous.
    If you want to blame someone, blame these bar managers that won’t let the bartenders pour real drinks anymore. This has been going on for years in order to keep bartenders from pouring a stonger drink.

    Report Post »  
    • the_ancient
      Posted on April 11, 2011 at 2:03am

      I blame the parents, I know when I was a kid, esp when I was a baby my parents inspected EVERYTHING when we went out to eat,

      Trust but verify.

      Report Post » the_ancient  
    • Hmschlmom
      Posted on April 11, 2011 at 2:31am

      @the Ancient…
      So, when YOU were the precious snowflake, Mommy and Daddy were justified in erecting their personal kid protection bubble (inspecting EVERYTHING) …but everyone else is just coddling and over protecting.

      Got it…

      Report Post » Hmschlmom  
    • Kalshion
      Posted on April 11, 2011 at 3:56am

      People will always blame the parents first, instead of the establishment I’ve noticed. This kind of mistake is more than possible, I’ve seen a bartender mix up drink orders before, but it seems to happen more on a rush day than on a calm day. (And, considering the TIME this happened, it was more than likely rush hour, or at the very least, there was a lot of people)

      Report Post »  
    • justme72
      Posted on April 11, 2011 at 9:00am

      Lol @ hmschlmom

      Report Post » justme72  
  • the_ancient
    Posted on April 11, 2011 at 1:52am

    Ohh good lord,

    Protect the Precious snowflake, Put him in a bubble and ensure the evil bad world can never touch the precious snowflake…

    My lord no wonder the Human Race as become some weak

    Report Post » the_ancient  
  • rpp
    Posted on April 11, 2011 at 1:44am

    This was not an accident. I seriously doubt anyone on the Applebees staff had anything to do with this. Hmm… If it was not an employee, that can only leave… THE FAMILY. Other than making tons of money is a lawsuit, I cannot possibly guess on what might motivate anyone to do this.

    Report Post » rpp  
  • End The Fed
    Posted on April 11, 2011 at 1:28am

    I don’t buy it – booze in a sippy cup on accident. Someone intentionally put it in the cup; wether it’s a family scam or a disgruntled employee, some one spiked the cup.

    Report Post » End The Fed  
    • End The Fed
      Posted on April 11, 2011 at 1:37am

      Two more things, the parents should inspect everything they allow a kid to have or consume. And here is the missing – h – from the previous post.

      Report Post » End The Fed  
  • katzenbacker73
    Posted on April 11, 2011 at 1:19am

    Don’t be surprised if the police investigation yields a totally different result from what is being reported by the media.

    Report Post » katzenbacker73  
  • Cold War Vet
    Posted on April 11, 2011 at 1:18am

    Wow. I knew that people were being dumbed down by the current education system, but this is beyond normal stupidity. Is Applebees now hiring the mentally handicapped as drink servers?

    Report Post » Cold War Vet  
  • Psychosis
    Posted on April 11, 2011 at 1:13am

    im not surprised

    have you seen all the college kids getting these jobs because the market sucks????

    and we all know how stupid college kids can be after 4 yrs of indoctrination

    Report Post » Psychosis  
  • marine249
    Posted on April 11, 2011 at 12:57am

    why would you fill a kids sippy cup at the bar.

    Report Post »  
    • Hmschlmom
      Posted on April 11, 2011 at 1:43am

      If they kept ALL the juices for every order at the bar, it is conceivable…but incredibly stupid. Someone at Applebees should have seen this potential problem a mile away…

      Punitive damages for an easily foreseeable and easily avoidably event would be ugly.

      Child endangerment, serving alcohol to a minor… Applebees could face some substantial charges. I would at least, expect their liquor license to be suspended.

      If a parent kept alcohol next to their kids juice, and got them “MIXED UP”, the parents would be charged, in a heartbeat. It should be no different here..

      Children are much more susceptible to alcohol poisoning than adults.

      Hats off to an on the ball Mom and Dad!

      Report Post » Hmschlmom  
    • sickdog
      Posted on April 11, 2011 at 1:56am

      uh… because you HAVE to?

      Report Post »  
    • turtleboy
      Posted on April 11, 2011 at 12:44pm

      I used to manage restaurants (for about 15 years), and I can tell you pretty much EVERY restaurant in the United States that has a bar, keeps their juice behind the bar. That way, they only have to keep the juices in one place. In restaurants, juice is primarily used for mixing alcoholic drinks, so behind the bar is the logical place for it.
      Also, the kid did not drink a mixed drink. He drank “alcoholic margarita mix”. There’s a difference. In some states, liquor distributors cannot sell anything that does not have alcohol in it. So they put a small amount of alcohol in their drink mixers (very little) to allow then to be sold in liquor stores and by the same people who sell liquor to restaurants. The “margarita” this toddler drank probably had less alcohol than a beer.

      Report Post »  
  • BOMUSTGO
    Posted on April 11, 2011 at 12:24am

    I bet the guy that got the apple juice was real disapointed!

    Report Post » BOMUSTGO  
  • mtDiamonds
    Posted on April 11, 2011 at 12:23am

    What da Hell??. Somebody would of got hurt in that store please believe it !!. .

    Report Post »  
  • Ifcabob
    Posted on April 11, 2011 at 12:18am

    Cool. Lighten up people.

    Report Post »  
    • BecksTheMan
      Posted on April 11, 2011 at 12:47am

      Hey I do have a sense of humor, but think about it if this was your small toddler you would be ready to hurt someone for doing this to your kid. This could have lasting effects on the poor kid and yes I am sure it will make for some very funny jokes on the late night circuit but Applebees is not one of the ones who will be laughing that is for sure.

      Report Post »  
  • mommy2many
    Posted on April 11, 2011 at 12:16am

    I’m thinking someone wanted to leave the bar with their margarita, poured it into a sippy cup, and it was picked up by mistake by the waiter.

    Report Post »  
    • Hmschlmom
      Posted on April 11, 2011 at 12:31am

      As a non drinker, I don’t know what drinks would be made with apple juice, that they would need to store it in the bar area. Could they really just have been that stupid? Store the kids apple juice in the bar because they make mixed drinks with it? Then someone uses a plastic kid cup for an adult beverage, and they get mixed up? I guess that is plausible…

      If the reason is just stupidity…parents still get a HUGE check. This child could be dead… should have been seen coming a mile away. Reckless endangerment…

      Report Post » Hmschlmom  
    • Showtime
      Posted on April 11, 2011 at 1:30am

      I‘m wondering why the restaurant isn’t separate from the bar…

      Report Post » Showtime  
  • conservativemom99
    Posted on April 11, 2011 at 12:16am

    Someone did this intentionally…this couldn’t possibly have happened by accident. There is just no fathomable way this could have been accidental…unless they hired a blind waiter with no sense of smell…

    Report Post » conservativemom99  
    • sickdog
      Posted on April 11, 2011 at 2:01am

      seriously? a waiter is supposed to be able to smell through a sippy cup? That’s assuming, of course, that the waiter goes around a smells every drink in the first place.

      Report Post »  
  • Sunnyr
    Posted on April 11, 2011 at 12:13am

    This poor little kid could have died as a result of some idiot’s incompetence. According to his mother, his alcohol test showed twice the legal limit for an ADULT! Even though I am against most lawsuits, this one would be justified. Good luck, little guy. I hope you don’t have any lasting effects of this horrible mistake.

    Report Post » Sunnyr  
    • the_ancient
      Posted on April 11, 2011 at 1:50am

      over react much? You obviously no know though about BAC and thus should refrain from speaking

      Report Post » the_ancient  
    • Justin Hale
      Posted on April 11, 2011 at 5:19am

      What state has a .05 leagal limit?

      Report Post »  
  • NOBALONEY
    Posted on April 11, 2011 at 12:08am

    Yeah, and when they tested the child at the hospital, his level was over the adiut level. I see a lawsuit coming.

    Report Post » NOBALONEY  
    • Kraus79
      Posted on April 11, 2011 at 1:52am

      The BAC was .10, which is relative to his size. You can give a mouse a BAC of .10 with a few drops from a medicine dropper.

      Report Post » Kraus79  
    • USAMama
      Posted on April 11, 2011 at 12:29pm

      Kraus79

      Yes, your right, which is why they are so lucky he didn’t drink more of it. This child could have gotten alcohol poisoning and died. This is terrible and the bartender needs to be fired. No excuse would be good enough for me if this were my kid.

      Report Post » USAMama  
  • SIHKS1120
    Posted on April 11, 2011 at 12:08am

    applebees sucks!!!!

    Report Post »  
  • BecksTheMan
    Posted on April 11, 2011 at 12:07am

    Wow! I am ashamed to admit I had to laugh when I first read this, but seriously this is not at all funny. What would you like to bet that Applebees is going to pay a very sobering figure in damages.

    Report Post »  
    • BecksTheMan
      Posted on April 11, 2011 at 12:17am

      How fricken stupid and incompetent could anyone be to have done this. Sounds to me like the bartender had a few too many himself. When I first read this I laughed thinking oh boy you know Letterman and Jay Leno are going to have a field day with this one, then I thought how pissed as a father I would be if this happened to my kid and how bad you would want to punish that restaurant to make damn sure this never again happens. In this case I hope they get millions.

      Report Post »  
  • dtully
    Posted on April 11, 2011 at 12:06am

    How in the world did they have a mix up like that? Do they get orders for alcoholic drinks in sippy cups on a regular basis?

    Report Post »  
  • Hmschlmom
    Posted on April 11, 2011 at 12:04am

    I would be ALL OVER this manager…

    This kid could easily have died from alcohol poisoning if the parents hadn’t been paying attention, and taken the cup.

    Just get the checkbook out…These folks are going to own this restaurant.

    Report Post » Hmschlmom  
  • TumbleBumble
    Posted on April 11, 2011 at 12:01am

    I cannot imagine a scenario in which a beverage in a kid’s meal could be filled with alcohol by accident.

    Report Post » TumbleBumble  
    • foobear
      Posted on April 11, 2011 at 3:23am

      When I was a kid, I drank what I thought was the milkshake I’d ordered, but turned out to be beer.

      You know how you have to pull pretty hard to get the milkshake? And you’re expecting a sweet ice cream flavor?

      Let me just say that experience was enough to put me off alcohol until well into my 20s.

      These things happen. If not at restaurants, then kids drinking from their parent’s cups by accident. It won’t harm the kid. Isn’t even worth a story, really.

      Report Post » foobear  
    • ruffnex
      Posted on April 11, 2011 at 3:53pm

      Does Applebee’s serve drinks in sippy cups? Or did the mother bring it with her…AND FILL IT herself?

      Report Post »  
    • ilovethiscountry
      Posted on April 11, 2011 at 6:27pm

      @ruffnix
      I think you hit the nail on the head.
      There will be no lasting ill effects on the toddler. Lighten up people.

      Report Post »  
  • VENTVSBEATVS
    Posted on April 11, 2011 at 12:00am

    Poor child; pray for his health.

    Report Post » VENTVSBEATVS  
    • Down2TheC
      Posted on April 11, 2011 at 12:03am

      I knew this non-news story would end up here. pfft.
      Back to talking to my walls.

       
    • Gold Coin & Economic News
      Posted on April 11, 2011 at 12:05am

      The bartender couldn’t have been paying that much attention to have poured a margarita into a sippy cup, please.

      Report Post » Gold Coin & Economic News  
    • sissykatz
      Posted on April 11, 2011 at 12:09am

      I guess I am just old and cynical but I don’t believe there could have been a mix up like that. A sippy cup
      pleasseeee.

      Report Post »  
    • joseph Fawcett
      Posted on April 11, 2011 at 12:11am

      I bet they will get a few free dinners!! How could this ever of happened??

      http://www.josephfawcettart.com Western artist

      Report Post » joseph Fawcett  
    • CatB
      Posted on April 11, 2011 at 12:31am

      I wonder if they carded him AFTER they got him drunk?

      Report Post »  
    • cheezwhiz
      Posted on April 11, 2011 at 12:34am

      How could this ever of happened??
      ———
      Bartender gave his own sippy cup to the customer ?

      Report Post » cheezwhiz  
    • turtleboy
      Posted on April 11, 2011 at 12:47am

      Unfortunate, but c’mon people. Everyone talking about how this family is going to “own” this Applebees, and “they’re gonna get a huge settlement.” If you’ve ever worked behind a bar, you know how this could happen. All the drink mixers (orange juice, cranberry, margarita mix, etc) are in identical containers on the rail. The only thing that distinguishes them are different colored pour spouts or tops. On a busy night, in a rush, the bartender could easily grab the wrong one by mistake. And what are the actual damages here? The hospital bill? .10 blood alcohol is equivalent to an adult drinking about a beer and a half. Not much. Our society has become so litigious. Someone makes an honest mistake, and people think they won the lawsuit lottery and can retire, even though they have no real damages. No wonder all our insurance rates are so high. Geez!

      Report Post »  
    • cheezwhiz
      Posted on April 11, 2011 at 12:55am

      Hey remember that “ finger in bowl of chilli” hoax at Wendys a few years ago ?
      That d-bag brought a friend’s finger in a cooler to pull off that scam .
      In this case, someone should investigate who brought the sippy cup . I hope there are good cameras in the reataurant

      Report Post » cheezwhiz  
    • proudconservative
      Posted on April 11, 2011 at 1:26am

      I would think the kid is going to be fine while a sippy cup of a mixed drink probably did get that toddler very drunk there most likely will be no lasting effects.

      When I was going to college I worked at a restaurant that served alcoholic drinks, higher scale than Applebee’s and I could see how this could happen because all the drinks including apple juice came from the bar.

      I noticed the bartender would always be engaged in conversation with like 5 or 6 people while mixing several drinks at a time so yes this probably was an honest mistake, but that being said this was a biggie…. and yes we all know what is going to happen next.

      Report Post »  
    • Showtime
      Posted on April 11, 2011 at 1:27am

      @Down2TheC
      Posted on April 11, 2011 at 12:03am
      I knew this non-news story would end up here. pfft.
      Back to talking to my walls.
      ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
      I knew some wall-talking idiot would make a snotty comment about this story.

      Report Post » Showtime  
    • Brasil2520
      Posted on April 11, 2011 at 1:49am

      In 10 years that kid will be in Detroit in the back of a car, getting drunk anyway, and shooting at cops, so what’s the big deal ?

      Brasil2520  
    • the_ancient
      Posted on April 11, 2011 at 2:00am

      And people wonder why the economy is in the tank, why there is no jobs. With the Mindset of SUE SUE SUE SUE no one in the right mind would even think about opening a business in this country.

      **** happens people, the Restaurant should pay for the medical bills for the incident, maybe from free coupons on future business and an apology, instead applebee’s insurance company will have to pay out hundred of thousands of dollars, or millions to the greedy family, everyones food prices will raise to cover the cost of the now permanent price increase on applebees GL insurance and some guy thinking opening a small restaurant wont, or wont be able to because of the increase in GL for all other restaurants. All because some snowflake got a little buzzed and the parents overreacted and got greedy…. Win for everyone right

      Report Post » the_ancient  
    • nzkiwi
      Posted on April 11, 2011 at 2:25am

      @turtleboy, proudconservative
      You guys are right. This is not a good thing to have happen, but some people seem to be over-reacting.

      Report Post »  
    • sissykatz
      Posted on April 11, 2011 at 2:51am

      I can see how accidents happen and do alot. But aren’t sippy cups plastic? Sorry if anyone thinks I am over reacting but they would have to pick up the “wrong” mixture and put it in a hard Plastic cup? Oh well I certainly hope the baby is ok and I’m sure if he only took a couple of sips he will be.

      Report Post »  
    • RepubliCorp
      Posted on April 11, 2011 at 6:11am

      Who is to say how the kid got that drink……….maybe there is more to this
      Better check mommies friends

      Report Post » RepubliCorp  
    • Polwatcher
      Posted on April 11, 2011 at 7:41am

      Could not have been a mistake. This was intentional by some perverted employee.

      Report Post »  
    • hud
      Posted on April 11, 2011 at 9:07am

      Why is it that 90% of the time when I see a story like this, the victim is black?

      Report Post »  
    • jackrorabbit
      Posted on April 11, 2011 at 10:36am

      Sadly, this has happened before, more than once. This is why you don’t order “icy non alcoholic drinks” for your kids when you eat out, unless it is at a fast food restaurant.

       
    • USAMama
      Posted on April 11, 2011 at 12:10pm

      Yes, pray for his health. This should not happen, and for those who say maybe the bartender just grabbed he wrong “spout” I’m sorry, not possible. My husband is head chef at a restaurant and my brother is a bar tender, I am very familiar with the workings, there is no “alcohol” spout. No alcoholic beverage comes out of a “spout” except maybe a beer tap. Margharita’s may be pre-mixed in a machine, but it’s a machine that stands alone, not with other juices. Sorry, not buying it.

      I don’t know that I would sue because I agree, people are too quick to sue, but I would want to make sure that bartender found a new profession. He or she should not be allowed behind the bar if they can make such a mistake. As for the thought it maybe a scam, I would hope that no parent would intentionally do that to their child. No parent I know would, but then again, I’ve heard of parents doing worse so you never know. But that would be even more tragic.

      Report Post » USAMama  
    • USAMama
      Posted on April 11, 2011 at 12:12pm

      @SutoSexy

      Well if that was a joke, they need to be fired. That is a very irresponsable joke. Any way you slice it, I think the bartender needs to find a new job, as a parent there is NO excuse I would accept for such a mistake.

      Report Post » USAMama  
    • William113
      Posted on April 11, 2011 at 2:50pm

      Yet again the Blaze does a horrible job of reporting. The mother received the drink and she put it in the sippy cup. I smell a rat these people are just trying to get some money. Good job Blaze keep up the good work.

      Report Post »  
    • SeanW
      Posted on April 11, 2011 at 5:16pm

      Actually this is a news story because on June 15, 2007 in Antioch California 2 year old Julian Mayorga was also rushed to the hospital after having a margarita served to him in his sippy cup.
      http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/19252488/ns/health-health_care/
      Thats twice now, that has been reported.

      Report Post »  
    • demint.disciple
      Posted on April 11, 2011 at 6:52pm

      Who the hell care…?

      Report Post » one years food ration like glenn says  
    • bluenite80
      Posted on April 12, 2011 at 10:35am

      I do not believe this story, I bet it comes out that the parents had something to do with it.. why would their be a sippy cup at the bar..
      If it did happen, it was a MISTAKE.. not like the kid was fed arsenic.. people are so sue happy..

      Report Post » bluenite80  
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