James Atkinson inquest: Allergy sufferers had to tell us - restaurant boss

James Atkinson died from a peanut allergy after eating takeaway food in 2020

A restaurant manager has told an inquest it was up to allergy sufferers to tell staff about their condition, after a man died following a takeaway.

James Atkinson died from a peanut allergy after eating chicken tikka masala pizza from Dadyal in Newcastle, on 10 July 2020.

A hearing has been told the restaurant's menus did not mention the dish contained peanut powder.

There is no evidence to suggest the 23-year-old told staff about his allergy.

The computer programmer, who was originally from Leeds, had ordered a pizza from Dadyal via the Deliveroo app, but after eating less than a slice he immediately became unwell.

The inquest at Newcastle Civic Centre heard that the Newcastle University graduate, who was living with flatmates in Jesmond, died at the city's Royal Victoria Infirmary under an hour.

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The cause of Mr Atkinson's death was anaphylaxis, caused by eating peanuts in the curry, the inquest has heard.

The inquest was told Dadyal restaurant has been shut for about two years

The inquest previously heard that Mr Atkinson had used Google to find out if chicken tikka masala contained peanuts, but he did not call the restaurant to inform them of his allergy.

On Friday, the hearing was told that the restaurant's menus mentioned coconut, almond and cashew in the ingredients of its chicken tikka masala, but not the peanut powder it actually contained.

The computer programmer became immediately unwell after eating the pizza

Gulfam Ulhaq, 58, who ran the restaurant for his brother who owned it, said it was up to customers to tell staff if they had an allergy.

Speaking through an interpreter, he told the inquest: "They could lose their life.

"It is the responsibility of the person who has the allergy to mention it," he added.

At the end of his evidence, Mr Ulhaq addressed Mr Atkinson's family to express his condolences at the loss of their son.

Dadyal restaurant in Howard Street has been closed for about two years.

The inquest continues.