A trip to New York left a German tourist with PTSD. So he sued a Mexican restaurant, Walmart and NYPD

A German tourist visited New York City in 2024 and had a series of experiences that led him to ultimately sue three different bodies. However, he lost all the lawsuits that he filed, in which he claimed that he was left with severe "post-traumatic symptoms" and suffered "distress". In the first case, he sued a New York City taqueria for damages, claiming that their salsa was too spicy. He alleged that the restaurant Los Tacos No.1, located in Times Square, failed to warn him how hot the salsa could be. Faycal Manz, an engineer and part-time law student, stated in court filings that a single bite of the self-serve green salsa left him with instant physical problems, The Independent reported. Documents from the federal court in the Southern District of New York show that he "immediately began suffering severe physical symptoms”. His heart rate shot up, and his tongue started burning. He added that the salsa also gave him mouth sores and gastrointestinal and emotional distress, and sought $100,000 in damages.

Hot salsa from Mexican restaurant in Times Square

“For someone like me, living in Germany and eating nothing spicy, it was a very big shock physically and mentally,” he said in the lawsuit. Despite everything he said, Manz lost, since Judge Dale E. Ho pointed out, “When it comes to salsa, the spice is often the point.” He added that even a simple Google search for Mexican food "salsa", or Los Tacos reviews, would show that the salsa "can be quite spicy". Meanwhile, the restaurant's legal team argues that Manz suffered because of his "own culpable conduct, carelessness, recklessness and negligence." Besides, court documents stated that Los Tacos No.1 described its salsa as "medium".

He sued Walmart and NYPD

The second trouble he faced was with Walmart. He sued the retail chain, stating that because he had a German phone number, he was denied access to the Wi-Fi in its Secaucus, New Jersey, store. He then sued the NYPD because the officers refused to take his statement or investigate the issue after he complained of an attack on a homeless person. Manz claimed it left him with “post-traumatic stress”. However, this case was also dismissed.