German tourist sues NYC's Los Tacos No. 1 over salsa being too spicy

Jessica Schladebeck, New York Daily News on Mar 12, 2026

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NEW YORK — A German tourist sued New York City’s famous taqueria Los Tacos No. 1 over salsa he said was so spicy he was left suffering “nonstop pain.”

Faycal Manz was visiting NYC in August 2024 when he stopped in at the taco joint in Times Square, opting to top his trio of tacos with Los Tacos’ green salsa. According to his lawsuit, he “had no idea how dangerous these sauces could be” so he loaded up.

“As I had no idea about the components of the sauce, no experience before and no warning information was mentioned on the sauce cup, I put a lot of sauces in the taco,” he wrote in the lawsuit, adding he almost instantly learned that the green salsa is “a very hot spicy one.”

After his meal, Manz said he suffered “diarrhea, nausea” and “mouth/tongue blisters which cause nonstop pain. He also claimed his Apple Watch registered a higher pulse “automatically while eating” his meal.

“For someone like me living in Germany and eating nothing spicy, it was a very big shock physically and mentally,” he wrote.

Despite his lack of knowledge, Manz admitted he did not go out of his way to ask staff at the taqueria about the spiciness of the salsa. He believes instead that the restaurant should have warned him about the potential harm.

Manz also noted that he generally has an adverse reaction to spiciness, as found through a colonoscopy.

“It is practically forbidden for me to eat such a very hot spicy food,” he said.

Manz requested that the restaurant shell out $100,000 to compensate him for medical expenses, pain and suffering, emotional distress and lost enjoyment of his New York City trip.

Judge Dale Ho denied Manz’s request and tossed the case.

“When it comes to salsa, the spice is often the point,” Ho said. The judge also noted that the complainant continued with his visit to the city including attending the U.S. Open “without issue,” seemingly undercutting the distress he professed in his suit.

“A quick google search for ‘Mexican food,’ ‘salsa,’ or even Los Tacos reviews likely would have revealed that salsa can be quite spicy,” Ho added.

For what it’s worth, Los Tacos’ No. 1 green salsa is labeled “medium.”