A furious diner has accused a Wetherspoon restaurant of discrimination after it refused to serve his wife puréed food .
Sam Worth has had dysphagia – a condition which makes it difficult to swallow food – since she suffered a brain haemorrhage in 2006.
Her husband Tim says the Van Dyck Forum Wetherspoon in Fishponds, Bristol, is one of a number of establishments which has discriminated against Sam.
The 49-year-old man today told Bristol Live they have violated the Equality Act 2010.
"We have encountered many places where my wife is not able to go to socialise with family and friends due to 'health and safety'," the full-time carer for Sam said.
"She gets quite upset and frustrated. She has enough problems as it is without struggling to have meals.
"It’s part of blame culture. They think they will get blamed if she chokes on purée, but not catering for her means she goes hungry or runs the risk of choking on solid food."
Tim, from Fishponds, also alleges Cricket St Thomas, a Warner Leisure Hotel in Chard, Somerset, were unable to blend Sam's food.
He continued: "They wouldn’t allow us to arrange for suitable food to be brought in, or for us to use our own blender. I would have blended it myself if they’d let me.
"She had to have turkey soup for her Christmas dinner , which I had to thicken, because soup isn’t suitable for her.
"It’s not what you want to do when you’re paying £1,800 for a four-night stay. Surely a qualified chef should be able to do a purée."
But Tim booked another stay at the hotel this Christmas, hoping he would be able to negotiate some leeway.
He claims the Warner chain’s head office told him he could not bring in a blender, even a new one in its packaging, for fear of cross-contamination.
Tim then cancelled his booking, meaning he lost a £100 deposit.
"They quote health and safety, but they are not looking after their guests," he said.
"They have been obstructive in every way."
Around 11% of the population has some form of dysphagia, according to a 2011 study. Mr Worth says businesses should cater for the condition as they do with nut allergies.
He added: "It’s ignorance. Pretty much everything can be blended except high-gluten food like pasta.
"Sam might have a pie with mashed potato and gravy. You blend it together with vegetables and make it a nice purée.
"It doesn’t look very nice but she is able to eat with the rest of us so she feels part of the group."
A Warner spokesperson said the lost deposit will be refunded to the couple.
He said: "Puréeing food is not permitted under our food preparation polices, which have been formulated in consultation with independent experts and local authorities.
"The process of puréeing presents several contamination risks and we would have explained this policy had we received notification prior to the guests’ stay.
"We have received correspondence from the guests and have apologised to them that we are unable to reverse this policy."
Wetherspoon spokesman Eddie Gershon said the chain is "more than happy" for customers to bring in their own blender and blend their meal in the pub.
But he added: "We do not have blenders in our kitchen and therefore we are unable to do this on behalf of any customer."
