A Leeds couple's romantic night in was left "ruined" after receiving a takeaway which "tasted like chemicals".
Alex Eisenegger and partner Abi planned to watch the Eurovision song contest on Saturday, May 14, and get a takeaway. They decided to opt for a Chinese and ordered from the Lucky Star.
Alex, who lives in Burley Park, said she had ordered from the Roundhay Road, Harehills, takeaway a few times before, formerly enjoying it on only one of those occasions. However, she decided to give the takeaway and second chance which left her with regret and "never" wanting to order from the eatery again.
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Alex, a Leeds Trinity University graduate, said: "I had ordered from the takeaway about three times. This time, we ended up eating hardly any of it as we felt sick.
"After giving them a second chance, the takeaway arrived over an hour later. Then, the Just Eat delivery driver was shouting at us and asking us where our address is. I explained but it was hard to get in touch. We were going back and forth with the delivery driver to find the address.
"We got the takeaway and the rice was burnt all over. The food was cold and the spring rolls tasted like chemicals."
Alex claims that she ordered a duck curry but it contained beef. She said: "We ordered the most expensive curry and they sent us the cheaper one. The worst part about this, is the beef in the duck curry. What if someone had a beef allergy and didn't notice? I have pretty bad allergies so I'm so specific with what I order, this could've killed someone."
Alex complained to Just Eat when the order was late, and claims she has been pleaded to get a refund for "over a month". She also said she has reported the takeaway to the Food Standards Agency (FSA).
In a complaint to Just Eat, Alex wrote: "The food was an hour late. The food was cold. There was beef in the duck dish. The driver shouted abuse at us. The food tasted like chemicals and we were unable to finish it as it made us ill. You at Just Eat have no care and consideration for your customers. This is a disgusting situation. I will be contacting the trading standards and I will never be using Just Eat again. This has been going on for over a month now and you haven't cared at all, just trying to ignore me and make me shut up."
Just Eat offered the customer a £5.00 credit refund. Alex told Leeds Live: "It's not good enough, the takeaway was £30."
A spokesperson for Just Eat responded to Alex and said: "I am sorry to hear that you have had problems with your order. On investigating this matter further I can see you have reported both the late order and the food, health, and safety issues due to food poisoning after the meal.
"I can see we have applied £5 account for the food in line with our policy on May 14, 2022, before the food poisoning was reported to Just Eat. When food poisoning is reported this type of claim is very serious. As Just Eat have previously advised you, you must report this to the Food Standards Agency (FSA).
"Food safety is an issue we take extremely seriously and we have been working with the FSA and the local authorities to help educate takeaway restaurants about health and hygiene."
And in a second email to the complainant, a compliance support spokesperson added: "As I mentioned previously, the restaurants on our platform are independent from the Just Eat business; any funds paid for the orders belong to the business owners and not Just Eat.
"Therefore, in instances like this, where a customer is seeking a refund, we would always require the restaurant's authorisation before we can proceed further. As they have no authorised a refund, what we can do is, if you would like for us we can provide your contact details to the restaurant owners for them to contact you directly and resolve the issue."
Alex added: "We tried to not let it ruin our night. We just wanted a treat while watching Eurovision. I will never ordered from the takeaway or Just Eat again."
Leeds Live contacted Lucky Star. An employee said the customers have caused a "nuisance" to their business by "constantly calling". After a comment request, the restaurant has made no further declarations.
NOTE: In an earlier version of this article we incorrectly stated that the takeaway involved was based on Aberford Road in Woodlesford. We apologise for any inconvenience caused.
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