A Texas woman says she nearly swallowed a large cow tooth in her Torchy’s Tacos order and is suing for $250,000. Then Torchy’s confirmed what it was

A customer is suing Torchy’s Tacos for $250,000, saying she discovered a cow tooth in a taco she ordered. She says she nearly swallowed it during a June 9 visit to the chain’s South Congress Avenue location in Austin, Texas.

According to KVUE, the legal complaint states that the customer ordered the Democrat taco, which features beef barbacoa made from beef cheek. PEOPLE noted that the customer, Nohemi Castillo, claimed that she felt “grossed out and sickened” by the experience and sought medical attention later that evening, where she was “given some prescriptions.”

The lawsuit claims that the restaurant was negligent in its food preparation and safety standards. According to PEOPLE, the complaint alleged that Torchy’s “knew about various problems contained in their sold food products” and that “the food was not reasonably prepared, inspected, or delivered.”

Torchy’s confirmed the item was a cow tooth after reviewing the complaint

Scott Vasquez, Castillo’s attorney, claims that the chain should have caught the object during its internal processes, KVUE reported. When describing his client’s reaction to finding the item, Vasquez said, “Her reaction was disgust. ‘What is this,’” and added, “It’s large,” while pointing to the tooth his client had found. He also noted that the object could have posed a choking hazard, the kind of risk one woman faced when she found plastic in her Crunchwrap.

The outlet noted that Vasquez also expressed frustration regarding how the company handled the initial complaint. He claimed that a manager and a lawyer at the chain shifted blame rather than addressing the issue directly. “I thought they’d want to take care of this internally immediately, but apparently not,” Vasquez said. “They felt, in my view, ‘Let’s blame someone else.’”

In a statement provided to KVUE, a spokesperson confirmed that the item found in the taco was indeed a cow tooth. The statement read, “We are aware of the situation and take all concerns about our food seriously. We source the highest quality food available, which means our barbacoa comes from natural beef cheek that we source from a supplier.”

They further noted, “Food safety is a top priority, and we maintain robust food handling, preparation and quality control procedures. Upon receiving the guest complaint, we conducted a thorough review and identified the item as a cow tooth. This can occasionally happen when processing the meat, though it is quite rare. We have partnered with our supplier to reinforce their internal procedures to prevent this from happening in the future.”

The lawsuit alleges that Torchy’s Tacos and its parent company, Success Foods Management Group, LLC, committed deceptive practices and failed to properly inspect the food before serving it. Per PEOPLE, Castillo is seeking damages of $250,000, or a lesser amount as determined by a jury. Her legal team argues that the company failed to implement necessary preventive controls to minimize hazards in its food supply.

According to KVUE, Vasquez stated that he hopes the company takes responsibility so that the lawsuit becomes unnecessary.