A waiter in Canada could face criminal charges after he allegedly served salmon to a customer who suffered an allergic reaction that “almost killed” him.

In a case that could mark a legal first for the country, diner Simon-Pierre Canuel filed a complaint with police after eating at a restaurant in Sherbrooke, Quebec. In the incident report, Mr Canuel said he repeatedly told his waiter about his seafood and salmon allergy and ordered beef tartare.

But he said that when he bit into what he thought would be beef, it transpired to be salmon. Instantaneously, he suffered a severe allergic reaction, he said.

Mr Canuel said he ordered beef tartare, but was served salmon (YouTube)

“The server had almost killed me,” he told The Globe and Mail. “I know it [was] an error, but that error had almost taken my life. My boyfriend almost lost his boyfriend.”

The incident is said to have taken place in May at Le Tapageur, a restaurant known for its French cuisine. Police officer Martin Carrier said on Friday that Mr Canuel repeatedly told his server about his concerns and asked him to go into the kitchen to ensure the chefs were informed about his allergies.

“When he took his first bite, he had a severe allergic reaction,” Mr Carrier told the Associated Press.

Mr. Canuel’s boyfriend, a doctor, tried to conduct mouth-to-mouth breathing and CPR, but he was unable to stop him going into anaphylactic shock and losing consciousness. Mr Canuel suffered a cardiac arrest, and was in a coma for two days.

The 22-year-old waiter, whose name has not been released, was arrested this week and released after he vowed to attend future court proceedings.

Mr Carrier said the victim filed an official complaint with Sherbrooke police on July 21. Police subsequently questioned the victim and witnesses, as well as searched Le Tapageur earlier this week, seizing evidence