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Heart Attack Grill Customer Has Heart Attack While Eating Burger

By Andrew Chow, Esq. on February 15, 2012 | Last updated on March 21, 2019

Las Vegas' famous Heart Attack Grill has claimed its first heart-attack victim. A man suffered a coronary as he bit into the restaurant's gluttonous "Triple Bypass Burger," Vegas' KVVU-TV reports.

The grill's owner at first thought it was a joke, but quickly realized the customer wasn't kidding. The owner called 911, and medics took the man to a hospital.

The man, in his 40s, has not been identified. If and when he recovers, the customer may try to sue the grill for allegedly causing his heart attack.

A jury, however, may have a beef with that potential claim.

First, there's science. A heart attack likely stems from multiple causes, including a person's obesity, lifestyle, and genetics -- not from a single unfinished meal.

Though a 2006 study in Australia found that just one meal high in saturated fat can make a person more prone to a heart attack, here the customer would likely have trouble proving the Heart Attack Grill's burger directly caused his coronary.

Next, there's the legal defense of assumption of risk, which bars recovery when a person knew the risks of an activity but proceeded to do it anyway.

In the customer's case, he likely knew what he was getting into when he voluntarily ordered the 6,000-calorie burger. (If you're wondering, the Triple Bypass comes with three half-pound burger patties, 15 pieces of bacon, half an onion cooked in lard, and buns that are also dipped in lard, ABC News reports.)

The restaurant even tells customers the burgers have a "taste ... worth dying for," and a sign on the front door reads, "Caution: This Establishment is Bad for Your Health." Funny, perhaps -- but they could be interpreted as warnings or disclaimers.

This is actually the second time in a year the Heart Attack Grill has received notoriety in connection with adverse health issues. A restaurant spokesman who weighed 570 pounds died in March 2011 at age 29; no lawsuit against the grill was filed.

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