US: Virginia man feels sharp pain while eating Taco Bell, nearly swallows a nose ring

A Virginia man baffled the internet after claiming that he almost swallowed a nose ring when he bit into something sharp while eating from Taco Bell. Jeremy, 33, told Newsweek he had ordered two steak cheesy street chalupas takeout from the food chain on July 24. When only a few bites left, he felt "something sharp" stuck at the back of his throat.

After clearing it from his throat, Jeremy tried to bite into it again, only for it to get wedged between his molars. He spat the object out when he felt a sharp pain and realised he had nearly swallowed someone's nose piercing.

"The nose ring, now slightly bent from the bite, got pushed to the front of my mouth, and I spit it out. It took a small bit of my filling with it, and [I felt] a small sharp pain from the bite," he said.

"I was in pure shock when I realized what it was. I looked at my wife, and she looked over and couldn't say anything."

Disgusted by the incident, Jeremy took to Reddit and shared the pictures of the jewellery piece he found in his food. His post gained over 45,000 votes and 4,200 comments.

"I decided to share it online because I thought it was so egregious that others would like to see it," Jeremy told Newsweek.

He reached out to the local branch of Taco Bell right after finding the nose ring in his takeout order. The manager appeared "mostly unbothered" and stated that the article couldn't have come from their store kitchen, not taking any responsibility.

"I just wish the manager had a bit more integrity and would take responsibility for this. It very clearly was an employee who made a mistake, but instead, they used the rhetoric that it wasn't their fault. But who else could it be? If not the store, then the distribution centre, maybe, but that's less believable to me," Jeremy said.

Jeremy added that he "felt sick for two days" and still has a sore throat. He believes the most Taco Bell would do is offer him coupons or gift cards.

"There's no accountability, and no reason I'd want free tacos for mental and physical pain, no matter how small," he said.

In a statement to Newsweek, Taco Bell said, "We take this very seriously. We are looking into this matter and strive to make things right with the customer."

(With inputs from agencies)