Wedding Woes

Couple Sues Wedding Vendors for $150k..

Saw this on the local news and thought I'd share with y'all...  This is the "Read your contracts" as this will be interesting to find out how they present this one to the court as a true breach of contract...  


January 01, 2018 04:33 PM

Couple Sues Wedding Vendors for $150K; Claims Surprise Vegan Wedding Ruined

A bride and groom and mother-of-the-bride have filed suit against their wedding vendors after they say the vendors ruined their surprise vegan wedding.

The lawsuit for breach of contract, filed in Ramsey County court on Dec. 22, alleges the following against Mintahoe, Inc., A’Bulae, LLC, and Bellagala about the May wedding in St. Paul.

Bride Siara Zee Elovich Williams and her now husband Kevin Williams set out to host a “completely vegan” wedding. The lawsuit states the venue choice near Mears Park in downtown St. Paul was “absolutely contingent” on serving a “delicious” vegan dinner to wedding guests. 

The couple told Mintahoe and A’Bulae “that they did not want their wedding guests to know they were eating an entirely plant-based meal.”

They wanted this surprise to be revealed to guests with signs put out by the servers at the end of the night. However, the couple claims servers told their guests they couldn’t have soy sauce or creamer for their coffee because those options weren't vegan, and the bride had mandated a vegan wedding. 

The court documents state problems came up before the wedding day.

Once the couple began setting up tasting events with Mintahoe’s chef, they noticed inconsistencies in their meal. They worked closely with a particular Mintahoe chef, however, this chef was no longer employed with the company on their wedding date. The lawsuit alleges the couple found out “accidentally” days before their wedding. 

Other contract disputes involved the cost of the menu for the wedding, which was mostly Thai food. 

The lawsuit states, “The food and service at the wedding was horrific,” going as far as calling the meal a “disaster.” 

The tofu that was supposed to be crispy was raw, the suit alleges. The curry was unidentifiable as such, and instead was just a bowl of vegetables, which were missing bamboo shoots as instructed and had exorbitant amounts of carrots.

The lawsuit states the noodles, a different kind than initially agreed upon, were “extremely overcooked (mush)” and the dish was missing bean sprouts.

“The sauce was horrific, as it was sickeningly sweet,” the lawsuit states, and it was not peanut sauce as expected. Peanuts placed on the table were not chopped.

Flatbread pizza served late at night was described as “simply nasty and inedible.” 

The groom went to the kitchen during the meal, and the lawsuit claims a wedding coordinator admitted the meal did not turned out as planned.

The lawsuit does not stop at the meal, though. The couple is alleging “horrendous” service. The listed complaints include: the father of the bride being told to get his own water at the bar; the grandfather of the bride had his cake taken away and not packaged as requested; and several others complained they never got cake. 

The vegan cake was ordered from an off-site vendor, and the lawsuit alleges the pastry chef took the leftovers home instead of the wedding party receiving them. 

A guest with celiac disease ate a seitan skewer that she believed was gluten-free, and it was not, according to the suit. The guest was “very ill” as a result. Another guest was allowed to bring in chicken fingers with permission from a wedding vender without consulting the couple.

The open bar was described as “disastrous.”

Via the lawsuit, the couple also expresses disappointment that the temperature of the groom’s room before the wedding was “extremely hot and stifling,” and the wedding party did not receive half the beer that was paid for.

The couple and mother-of-the-bride are seeking $21,721 for each of the seven counts of breach of contract, totaling $152,047. The last count seeks damages in an amount which would be determined at trial.

None of the vendors had returned requests for comment. 

Credits

Theresa Malloy

Updated: January 01, 2018 04:33 PM
Created: January 01, 2018 01:30 PM

Source: KSTP-TV

«1345

Re: Couple Sues Wedding Vendors for $150k..

  • I'm no lawyer, but my guess is the food vendors will be off the hook on the reveal because state and federal food code in regard to ingredients/allergens, back when I was a food manager they drilled it in we had to know EVERYTHING in anything being served and able to answer questions on the sourcing per food laws, and now having food allergies & intolerances, you bet your glutes I'm asking what's in my food and demanding a truthful answer (don't care if it's Vegan, or the B&G's big surprise, I care if it's got one of my allergens in it!)...  I also suspect that's why they allowed the chicken strips in - js vendors around here tend to be REALLY strict about such things, there had to be something compelling that it was allowed...


  • I'm dying at the "exorbitant amount of carrots." But yes, especially if you're serving food that contains common allergens (hello peanut sauce), guests need to know what's in everything.

    Some of their complaints are legit, like the missing beer, not being able to take their leftover cake, and they may have grounds to stand on about the cost if that changed without being notified. But come on people, lying to your guest isn't necessary. I'm vegetarian/mostly vegan and I don't try to "trick" people into eating that way too. 

    I thought that phrase was hilarious also!

    I realize it is much more then the overuse of carrots.  But I read that line and thought, "I'm suing for $150+K because there were too many carrots!" 

    Wedding Countdown Ticker
  • I'm dying at the "exorbitant amount of carrots." But yes, especially if you're serving food that contains common allergens (hello peanut sauce), guests need to know what's in everything.

    Some of their complaints are legit, like the missing beer, not being able to take their leftover cake, and they may have grounds to stand on about the cost if that changed without being notified. But come on people, lying to your guest isn't necessary. I'm vegetarian/mostly vegan and I don't try to "trick" people into eating that way too. 

    I thought that phrase was hilarious also!

    I realize it is much more then the overuse of carrots.  But I read that line and thought, "I'm suing for $150+K because there were too many carrots!" 


    First World Problems!
  • I'm super confused about the "gluten free seitan skewer" that the guest with celiac had. Was the guest told it was seitan? How did neither she nor the server not know that seitan cannot be gluten free because, um, all it is is gluten???
    I was assuming it was presented as some kind of meat skewer (like it was supposed to be chicken satay or a shish kabob), since the couple wanted to keep the vegan-ness secret. If one wasn't trying to hide that something was vegan, it would be labeled like "chicken" satay, but who knows how they presented their food. 
  • I'm super confused about the "gluten free seitan skewer" that the guest with celiac had. Was the guest told it was seitan? How did neither she nor the server not know that seitan cannot be gluten free because, um, all it is is gluten???
    I was assuming it was presented as some kind of meat skewer (like it was supposed to be chicken satay or a shish kabob), since the couple wanted to keep the vegan-ness secret. If one wasn't trying to hide that something was vegan, it would be labeled like "chicken" satay, but who knows how they presented their food. 
    That’s so dangerous. I have a friend who is severely celiac. We have to do a major go over of everything in our kitchen and make sure that we don’t do any conventional baking before she comes over to eat. This is a prime example of “vision” over guests’ comfort.
  • lyndausvilyndausvi mod
    First Anniversary First Answer 5 Love Its Name Dropper
    edited January 2018
    I'm super confused about the "gluten free seitan skewer" that the guest with celiac had. Was the guest told it was seitan? How did neither she nor the server not know that seitan cannot be gluten free because, um, all it is is gluten???
    I was wondering this also.

    One on hand they are suing because a server told a guest there is no cream for their coffee because it's a vegan wedding.   Yet, on the other hand it seems a guest might have assumed something because the fact it was a vegan was kept a secret.   Or maybe another server kept the secret by passing off the satay as "chicken" not realizing how dangerous it could be for allergy purposes.




    Like others said, there are legit grievances and not-so-much ones.  However, that is pretty standard in lawsuits.   Complain about everything knowing a few things will get dropped.

    Unless you are a vegan or dairy free venue cream with coffee is standard.   I don't even drink coffee and know this.   Telling a guest there is no cream at their venue would be met with a lot of WTF and maybe even bad reviews.    Telling the guests the couple requested a vegan meal was complete appropriate in my opinion. 


    I do not think there needs to be an announcement that the wedding will be vegan. However, do not make it a surprise DURING the event.     Especially if you plan serving fake meat.  A lot of ingredients used for fake meats include things that people can be allergic.  The guests deserve to know that they are eating.    

    Lords knows vegans completely drill servers on what is in the food at every place they patron.   I'm shocked they wouldn't allow their guests the same consideration.   This is much bigger than showing them they do not need meat.  
    There is a few vegan items someone isn't allergic to.  My husband is allergic to strawberries.  My sister is allergic to garlic.  Others are allergic to gluten, soy, etc.  

    I will say I think vegans do a disservice to their meat-eating guests by trying to prove how delicious vegan meals can be by tricking them into eating them.    Fake meat is not delicious in my opinion.  I'm savvy enough to know I'm eating fake meat.  

    For the record,  just yesterday my lunch was vegan. I had a bowl of roasted tomato, other veggies and wild rice.  My side was a piece of Naan bread with some guac.   A few days ago I had a Southwest rice bowl (rice, black beans, grilled veggies).       There are simpler ways to serve a vegan meal to guests without using fake meat.


    Oh, and if you want a real vegan meal for a large amount of people, use a vegan caterer.    Sure my husband as a few vegan dishes on his menu (none include fake meat), but even he would have issues with catering a full vegan dinner for 200 people.  That is not is specialty nor does he pretend otherwise.






    What differentiates an average host and a great host is anticipating unexpressed needs and wants of their guests.  Just because the want/need is not expressed, doesn't mean it wouldn't be appreciated. 
  • I'm super confused about the "gluten free seitan skewer" that the guest with celiac had. Was the guest told it was seitan? How did neither she nor the server not know that seitan cannot be gluten free because, um, all it is is gluten???
    SITB - my guess is that neither of them knew what seitan is. i didn't know what it was until a friend recently went vegan and used it for his "turkey" in a "traditional Thanksgiving dinner." i googled it because while i've heard of tofurkey, seitan was new for me.

    i'm confused about the refusal for soy sauce - it's soy, water, salt and wheat. how is that not vegan? 
  • LondonLisaLondonLisa member
    First Anniversary First Comment First Answer 5 Love Its
    edited January 2018
    *Barbie* said:
    I'm super confused about the "gluten free seitan skewer" that the guest with celiac had. Was the guest told it was seitan? How did neither she nor the server not know that seitan cannot be gluten free because, um, all it is is gluten???
    SITB - my guess is that neither of them knew what seitan is. i didn't know what it was until a friend recently went vegan and used it for his "turkey" in a "traditional Thanksgiving dinner." i googled it because while i've heard of tofurkey, seitan was new for me.

    i'm confused about the refusal for soy sauce - it's soy, water, salt and wheat. how is that not vegan? 
    I remember a few years back that Kikoman Soy Sauce got in trouble for some pretty violent, barbaric animal testing. I don't know about you, but here I would guess 90% of restaurant soy sauce is Kikoman. I know a couple hindus/vegetarians/vegans that don't eat soy sauce out as they don't want to support that brand. 

    A bit like how many people boycott Nestle for what they did in Africa. 
  • *Barbie* said:
    I'm super confused about the "gluten free seitan skewer" that the guest with celiac had. Was the guest told it was seitan? How did neither she nor the server not know that seitan cannot be gluten free because, um, all it is is gluten???
    SITB - my guess is that neither of them knew what seitan is. i didn't know what it was until a friend recently went vegan and used it for his "turkey" in a "traditional Thanksgiving dinner." i googled it because while i've heard of tofurkey, seitan was new for me.

    i'm confused about the refusal for soy sauce - it's soy, water, salt and wheat. how is that not vegan? 
    Some people also try to avoid soy because there's been some shaky research possibly linking it to hormonal disruptions, especially in women. I don't believe anything has been actually solidified, but you know how people run with things. But yes, some of the online vegan groups I'm in (for recipes only because most of them are cray) avoid products that test on animals or also products like palm oil that destroy animal habitats to be created, and aren't necessary. There are also "whole food, plant based" vegans who stay away from oil, soy & a couple other things I forget. 
  • *Barbie* said:
    I'm super confused about the "gluten free seitan skewer" that the guest with celiac had. Was the guest told it was seitan? How did neither she nor the server not know that seitan cannot be gluten free because, um, all it is is gluten???
    SITB - my guess is that neither of them knew what seitan is. i didn't know what it was until a friend recently went vegan and used it for his "turkey" in a "traditional Thanksgiving dinner." i googled it because while i've heard of tofurkey, seitan was new for me.

    i'm confused about the refusal for soy sauce - it's soy, water, salt and wheat. how is that not vegan? 
    In addition to the animal testing @LondonLisa mentioned, I am also wondering if the use of fungal and bacterial cultures during the brewing process also plays a factor into why it's not considered vegan...But I'm an omnivore, so don't put too much stock into my theory...
  • *Barbie* said:
    I'm super confused about the "gluten free seitan skewer" that the guest with celiac had. Was the guest told it was seitan? How did neither she nor the server not know that seitan cannot be gluten free because, um, all it is is gluten???
    SITB - my guess is that neither of them knew what seitan is. i didn't know what it was until a friend recently went vegan and used it for his "turkey" in a "traditional Thanksgiving dinner." i googled it because while i've heard of tofurkey, seitan was new for me.

    i'm confused about the refusal for soy sauce - it's soy, water, salt and wheat. how is that not vegan? 
    I remember a few years back that Kikoman Soy Sauce got in trouble for some pretty violent, barbaric animal testing. I don't know about you, but here I would guess 90% of restaurant soy sauce is Kikoman. I know a couple hindus/vegetarians/vegans that don't eat soy sauce out as they don't want to support that brand. 

    A bit like how many people boycott Nestle for what they did in Africa. 
    I don't really consume either of these brands, but I feel really uninformed as I don't know about either of these things. To google or not to google, that is the question....
    *********************************************************************************

    image
  • *Barbie* said:
    I'm super confused about the "gluten free seitan skewer" that the guest with celiac had. Was the guest told it was seitan? How did neither she nor the server not know that seitan cannot be gluten free because, um, all it is is gluten???
    SITB - my guess is that neither of them knew what seitan is. i didn't know what it was until a friend recently went vegan and used it for his "turkey" in a "traditional Thanksgiving dinner." i googled it because while i've heard of tofurkey, seitan was new for me.

    i'm confused about the refusal for soy sauce - it's soy, water, salt and wheat. how is that not vegan? 
    I remember a few years back that Kikoman Soy Sauce got in trouble for some pretty violent, barbaric animal testing. I don't know about you, but here I would guess 90% of restaurant soy sauce is Kikoman. I know a couple hindus/vegetarians/vegans that don't eat soy sauce out as they don't want to support that brand. 

    A bit like how many people boycott Nestle for what they did in Africa. 
    I don't really consume either of these brands, but I feel really uninformed as I don't know about either of these things. To google or not to google, that is the question....
    I didn't know about Kikoman or Nestle .... it does make me want to reconsider some things I buy now ....

    Unfortunately with googling, you'll get a lot of typical brands that test on animals :( You won't realize how many brands do, and it may not be that particular one but the mothership does - so in turn they do. It's sad.
  • *Barbie* said:
    I'm super confused about the "gluten free seitan skewer" that the guest with celiac had. Was the guest told it was seitan? How did neither she nor the server not know that seitan cannot be gluten free because, um, all it is is gluten???
    SITB - my guess is that neither of them knew what seitan is. i didn't know what it was until a friend recently went vegan and used it for his "turkey" in a "traditional Thanksgiving dinner." i googled it because while i've heard of tofurkey, seitan was new for me.

    i'm confused about the refusal for soy sauce - it's soy, water, salt and wheat. how is that not vegan? 
    I remember a few years back that Kikoman Soy Sauce got in trouble for some pretty violent, barbaric animal testing. I don't know about you, but here I would guess 90% of restaurant soy sauce is Kikoman. I know a couple hindus/vegetarians/vegans that don't eat soy sauce out as they don't want to support that brand. 

    A bit like how many people boycott Nestle for what they did in Africa. 
    I don't really consume either of these brands, but I feel really uninformed as I don't know about either of these things. To google or not to google, that is the question....
    I didn't know about Kikoman or Nestle .... it does make me want to reconsider some things I buy now ....

    Unfortunately with googling, you'll get a lot of typical brands that test on animals :( You won't realize how many brands do, and it may not be that particular one but the mothership does - so in turn they do. It's sad.
    We don’t buy Nestlé products because of so many issues with their brand. They are everywhere. They even owned The Body Shop up to this year and several beauty brands. 

    I don’t use Kikkomon, luckily we can get locally sourced soy sauces in our area that don’t have the additives. 
  • *Barbie* said:
    I'm super confused about the "gluten free seitan skewer" that the guest with celiac had. Was the guest told it was seitan? How did neither she nor the server not know that seitan cannot be gluten free because, um, all it is is gluten???
    SITB - my guess is that neither of them knew what seitan is. i didn't know what it was until a friend recently went vegan and used it for his "turkey" in a "traditional Thanksgiving dinner." i googled it because while i've heard of tofurkey, seitan was new for me.

    i'm confused about the refusal for soy sauce - it's soy, water, salt and wheat. how is that not vegan? 
    I remember a few years back that Kikoman Soy Sauce got in trouble for some pretty violent, barbaric animal testing. I don't know about you, but here I would guess 90% of restaurant soy sauce is Kikoman. I know a couple hindus/vegetarians/vegans that don't eat soy sauce out as they don't want to support that brand. 

    A bit like how many people boycott Nestle for what they did in Africa. 
    I don't really consume either of these brands, but I feel really uninformed as I don't know about either of these things. To google or not to google, that is the question....
    I didn't know about Kikoman or Nestle .... it does make me want to reconsider some things I buy now ....

    Unfortunately with googling, you'll get a lot of typical brands that test on animals :( You won't realize how many brands do, and it may not be that particular one but the mothership does - so in turn they do. It's sad.
    We don’t buy Nestlé products because of so many issues with their brand. They are everywhere. They even owned The Body Shop up to this year and several beauty brands. 

    I don’t use Kikkomon, luckily we can get locally sourced soy sauces in our area that don’t have the additives. 
    Yeh it's kind of like Estee Lauder and P&G. Many of their brands they own say they don't test on animals, but they parent company does so it's hard to say. {Estee Lauder owns MAC and MAC has had to continuously make statements saying they don't test on animals. They also sell ONLINE to China. China makes company test on animals before selling, and since MAC only does online it's a loop hole. Shady one, but still}
  • *Barbie* said:
    I'm super confused about the "gluten free seitan skewer" that the guest with celiac had. Was the guest told it was seitan? How did neither she nor the server not know that seitan cannot be gluten free because, um, all it is is gluten???
    SITB - my guess is that neither of them knew what seitan is. i didn't know what it was until a friend recently went vegan and used it for his "turkey" in a "traditional Thanksgiving dinner." i googled it because while i've heard of tofurkey, seitan was new for me.

    i'm confused about the refusal for soy sauce - it's soy, water, salt and wheat. how is that not vegan? 
    I remember a few years back that Kikoman Soy Sauce got in trouble for some pretty violent, barbaric animal testing. I don't know about you, but here I would guess 90% of restaurant soy sauce is Kikoman. I know a couple hindus/vegetarians/vegans that don't eat soy sauce out as they don't want to support that brand. 

    A bit like how many people boycott Nestle for what they did in Africa. 
    I don't really consume either of these brands, but I feel really uninformed as I don't know about either of these things. To google or not to google, that is the question....
    I didn't know about Kikoman or Nestle .... it does make me want to reconsider some things I buy now ....

    Unfortunately with googling, you'll get a lot of typical brands that test on animals :( You won't realize how many brands do, and it may not be that particular one but the mothership does - so in turn they do. It's sad.
    We don’t buy Nestlé products because of so many issues with their brand. They are everywhere. They even owned The Body Shop up to this year and several beauty brands. 

    I don’t use Kikkomon, luckily we can get locally sourced soy sauces in our area that don’t have the additives. 
    Yeh it's kind of like Estee Lauder and P&G. Many of their brands they own say they don't test on animals, but they parent company does so it's hard to say. {Estee Lauder owns MAC and MAC has had to continuously make statements saying they don't test on animals. They also sell ONLINE to China. China makes company test on animals before selling, and since MAC only does online it's a loop hole. Shady one, but still}
    Ugh seriously, once you start down this rabbit hole, it's a looooong, depressing fall. I felt like it was great to have my eyes opened to all of this shit and I do my best to avoid these sketch companies as much as possible, realizing it's not always feasible to be 100%.
  • We don’t buy Nestlé products because of so many issues with their brand. They are everywhere. They even owned The Body Shop up to this year and several beauty brands. 

    I don’t use Kikkomon, luckily we can get locally sourced soy sauces in our area that don’t have the additives. 
    Yeh it's kind of like Estee Lauder and P&G. Many of their brands they own say they don't test on animals, but they parent company does so it's hard to say. {Estee Lauder owns MAC and MAC has had to continuously make statements saying they don't test on animals. They also sell ONLINE to China. China makes company test on animals before selling, and since MAC only does online it's a loop hole. Shady one, but still}
    Ugh seriously, once you start down this rabbit hole, it's a looooong, depressing fall. I felt like it was great to have my eyes opened to all of this shit and I do my best to avoid these sketch companies as much as possible, realizing it's not always feasible to be 100%.
    100% bolded!!

    I made the mistake of looking up animal testing brands to be more conscious on what we buy and omfg .... I was like "Well there goes half the house :|"

    I do try to make changes where I can {ex: stopped using pads & tampons and got a DivaCup - financial change and not purchasing from possible animal testers!}
  • *Barbie* said:
    I'm super confused about the "gluten free seitan skewer" that the guest with celiac had. Was the guest told it was seitan? How did neither she nor the server not know that seitan cannot be gluten free because, um, all it is is gluten???
    SITB - my guess is that neither of them knew what seitan is. i didn't know what it was until a friend recently went vegan and used it for his "turkey" in a "traditional Thanksgiving dinner." i googled it because while i've heard of tofurkey, seitan was new for me.

    i'm confused about the refusal for soy sauce - it's soy, water, salt and wheat. how is that not vegan? 
    I remember a few years back that Kikoman Soy Sauce got in trouble for some pretty violent, barbaric animal testing. I don't know about you, but here I would guess 90% of restaurant soy sauce is Kikoman. I know a couple hindus/vegetarians/vegans that don't eat soy sauce out as they don't want to support that brand. 

    A bit like how many people boycott Nestle for what they did in Africa. 
    I don't really consume either of these brands, but I feel really uninformed as I don't know about either of these things. To google or not to google, that is the question....
    I didn't know about Kikoman or Nestle .... it does make me want to reconsider some things I buy now ....

    Unfortunately with googling, you'll get a lot of typical brands that test on animals :( You won't realize how many brands do, and it may not be that particular one but the mothership does - so in turn they do. It's sad.
    We don’t buy Nestlé products because of so many issues with their brand. They are everywhere. They even owned The Body Shop up to this year and several beauty brands. 

    I don’t use Kikkomon, luckily we can get locally sourced soy sauces in our area that don’t have the additives. 
    Yeh it's kind of like Estee Lauder and P&G. Many of their brands they own say they don't test on animals, but they parent company does so it's hard to say. {Estee Lauder owns MAC and MAC has had to continuously make statements saying they don't test on animals. They also sell ONLINE to China. China makes company test on animals before selling, and since MAC only does online it's a loop hole. Shady one, but still}
    I also think it's a slippery slope.   There's a big difference between developing a new cosmetic or perfume that you spray in the face of an animal and developing foods or drugs that need to be tested.   
  • banana468 said:
    Yeh it's kind of like Estee Lauder and P&G. Many of their brands they own say they don't test on animals, but they parent company does so it's hard to say. {Estee Lauder owns MAC and MAC has had to continuously make statements saying they don't test on animals. They also sell ONLINE to China. China makes company test on animals before selling, and since MAC only does online it's a loop hole. Shady one, but still}
    I also think it's a slippery slope.   There's a big difference between developing a new cosmetic or perfume that you spray in the face of an animal and developing foods or drugs that need to be tested.   
    They could test on humans instead. {not that it's a great idea, but there are some nasty people in prison that we could test on lol} I mean it's humans that are using the products ...
Sign In or Register to comment.
Choose Another Board
Search Boards