Fly in salad e-mail leads to lawsuit

AURORA, Ill., Aug. 16 (UPI) -- An Aurora, Ill., restaurant is suing a city official for allegedly sending out hundreds of e-mails complaining of a fly in his salad, court records indicate.

The Chicago Tribune reported Manuel Maysonet, assistant director of the Aurora Economic Development Commission, had lunch at the restaurant, Walter Payton's Roundhouse, Thursday. He ordered a chopped salad, which he sent back because he said there was a fly in it, the newspaper said, adding the restaurant offered to replace the salad, but Maysonet instead ordered a cheeseburger, which he ate.

Maysonet allegedly then sent out a mass e-mail to approximately 300 recipients, telling them of his experience and warning them to avoid the restaurant until health department officials could inspect it and report their findings.

The restaurant's owner, America's Brewing Co., seeks more than $100,000 from Maysonet in its lawsuit.

The Health Department made surprise inspection the day after the e-mail was sent, the restaurant's operator, Scott Ascher, said.

"I think we scored a 94 or a 96 (out of a possible 100) -- it was our normal score," Scott said.