A 25-year-old man was denied entry to a McDonald’s restaurant in Cambridge after failing a breathalyser test.
He told the Cambridge News:
I went to McDonald's at 2am to get some food and security staff said I had to blow into a breathalyser if I wanted to get in. They said I could have got in if I was three times the drink-drive limit or under. I was well over that, but I couldn't believe they said no.
How do you get turned away from McDonald's for being too drunk? I don't know why anyone would be there at 2am if they hadn't been drinking. They can't have had many customers that night.
McDonald's told BuzzFeed News that the restaurant in question has had security guards on the doors for two years and that the man was initially denied entry due to his behaviour.
The man was given the breath test after he challenged the decision not to let him in, a spokesperson for the fast food chain said. When he was shown to be considerably over the limit, he was asked to leave.
A statement added: "At the request of Cambridgeshire police we are taking part in their pilot scheme. A person's behaviour will determine if they are refused entry to the restaurant, the breathalyser simply backs up the decision already taken by the security team. This will have no impact on the vast majority of our customers."
Cambridgeshire police are currently running a trial breathalyser scheme in the city in a bid to combat binge drinking.
In March, the police and crime commissioner for Cambridgeshire announced that breathalyser kits would be issued to security staff at busy venues to allow them to request breath tests from individuals who seem heavily intoxicated.