Food Poisoning

We had lunch in a restaurant in Alicante on Sunday which was a seafood pasta, clams, prawns etc. My husband became very sick with food poisoning. We telephoned the restaurant and they simply said what do you want us to do about it. Is there a formal way of complaining. As would not wish this on anyone else...

My wife and daughter both often get mild food poisoning from almost any restaurant in Spain. I suspect the levels of hygiene are not the best, I'm afraid.

I think you are eating in the wrong places.

I have never had any problems and I mostly eat in Spanish rather than English places. I also tend to eat in the cheaper type establishments. Most are family owned and managed and always have the same staff.

On the coast the seafood is always very fresh.

In Spain there is a consumers organisation called OMIC, which stands for Oficina Municipal de Informacion al Consumidor (Municipal Office of Consumer Information) and they are in all large towns and cities. 

This should be your first port of call, as they will be able to advise you of your rights in such circumstances, and be able to help you put in a formal complaint.

If you suspect food poising, then call a Doctor before you call the restaurant or the OMIC, as the Doctor will be able to give you a letter stating that food poising is either suspect or confirmed.

I agree with Faro, I have lived in Spain for numerous years and frequently eat cheap menu del dia in Spanish restuarants, I have not come across anyone that has suffered from food poisoning !  Are you sure that you are not just a little bit sensitive to sea food, I cannot eat any form of shell fish, it causes violent pains and upset stomach and even the odd bit of cod and chips here and in the UK can cause a bit of a runny tummy so to speak ! 

... I should try remember that ... have lived in Madrid for almost a year and had food poisoning 5 times :-) the last time I had it must be 1996 ...  Spanish food IS great (and the only place that beats it by a hair is Japan), but I have personally noticed that only about 1/3rd of people wash their hands after going to the bathroom, so hygiene isn't as much a priority as, say Scandinavia (or Japan).

So your bouts of food poisoning are they after eating al types of food, or could it be related to sea food ?

So your bouts of food poisoning are they after eating all  types of food, or could it be related to sea food ?

Sorry not the original poster, we don't eat ANY seafood (Madrid is probably not as good for that :-), but yes whole family have an odd sensitivity to food in Spain since we are "multi national" and lived in 5 countries, travelled extensively etc.

I remember many years ago my wife getting food poisoning in New York after eating tuna salad or something similar. We were young, and it would have been a cheap bite. She reported it to a friendly but cynical "Colombo-lookalike" public health inspector. "Jeez, lady, whaddaya expect, eating seafood in cheap dives? it's just askin' for trouble".

Trust me, it takes a lot to get me "going" ... can handle a Brick Lane Phaal, Finnish horsemeat salami or Durban street corner bunny chow, no problem.

That's a bit of an unfortunate situation you and your family have misterk, but if it happens almost everytime you eat out it sounds more likely that your family are sensitive to something rather than getting food poisoning. Maybe have a test, it could be something simple like a dressing, fresh mayo and certain oils can act like a laxitive.  If not come and live on the coast it seems as if the food is better here than Madrid !

I used to live in Barcelona (Sitges), but the water was terrible (it sounds like I complain a lot, but I do like Spain actually :-).