TOMS RIVER — An Ocean County man is suing Jersey Mike’s and Grubhub after he allegedly found a pair of dentures inside a cheesesteak sub delivered to his Bayville home last year.
Fernando Rodriguez, 41, said he ordered the sandwich from the Jersey Mike’s in Lacey Township through Grubhub on April 27, 2025, according to a lawsuit filed May 28 in New Jersey Superior Court.
The lawsuit says the sandwich was wrapped in paper and sealed with tape when it arrived. Rodriguez later found dentures inside the sub, making the food contaminated and unsafe to eat, according to the complaint.
Rodriguez reported the incident to Lacey Township police after driving to the Jersey Mike’s location to complain, according to a police report.
Rodriguez told officers the order was delivered to the front steps of his home around 1:30 p.m. by a middle-aged woman with blonde hair. Police said the store manager identified the woman as a Grubhub driver who had only picked up orders from the restaurant once or twice before.
According to the police report, an officer contacted the driver, who first claimed the dentures belonged to her father, who had been eating at the restaurant. After additional questioning, police said the woman admitted the dentures were hers.
The driver told police she had opened Rodriguez’s sandwich to check whether the order was correct. She said she was eating at the same time and accidentally placed her dentures in the sandwich, according to the report.
Police told the woman the dentures were at the Jersey Mike’s store and that she would need to contact the restaurant before picking them up. No further police action was taken.
Rodriguez claims in the lawsuit that the discovery caused emotional distress, shock, disgust, nausea, loss of appetite and mental anguish.
The lawsuit alleges Jersey Mike’s was negligent by failing to properly package and protect the sandwich before delivery. It also claims Grubhub failed to properly train and supervise its drivers, creating a risk that food could be mishandled or contaminated.
Multiple media outlets, including Jersey Shore Online, tried to reach the Lacey Township location but we were told no comment before the phone disconnected. A corporate spokesperson for Jersey Mike’s did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
A Grubhub spokesperson said the company was troubled by the report.
“We can confirm the individual is no longer contracted to deliver with Grubhub,” the spokesperson told NJ.com.
Ian M. Goldman, the attorney who filed the lawsuit, said the case raises larger concerns about food delivery and packaging standards.
“Consumers place an enormous amount of trust in the food they purchase,” Goldman said, adding that finding an object from another person’s mouth in a sandwich raises serious food safety concerns.
