A Filipino American couple is filing a lawsuit after claiming it found a rat in a bowl of soup ordered from a New York City Korean restaurant, reports the Global Nation Inquirer.
The restaurant responded by releasing a video of that soup being prepared in sanitary conditions. It also says the couple made a claim against another restaurant six years ago about a fly found in their food, the Daily Mail reported.
Eunice Lucero Lee said on Instagram that she and her husband ordered take-out food from a Koreatown restaurant in New York City called Gammeeok. The couple announced that it has retained legal counsel and filed a claim with the New York City Health Department.
‘If you look at the other party’s yelp account, there is a review in the past saying that flies came out of that person’s house because they “take out” in the same way as we did at another restaurant in k-town. It’s a once-in-a-lifetime thing for most people,” the restaurant said in response to the couple’s claim, according to the Daily Mail.
The paper reports the health department found 15 violations during its last inspection at Gammeeok in January, including for sanitation, food safety and cleanliness.
Gammeeok told the Inquirer those violations were mostly due to the low temperature of an old refrigerator that has since been replaced. It says there were no violations in connection to rats or flies.
The couple cautioned restaurant-goers of making any general assumptions about Asian cuisine.
“We have been going to this restaurant for a decade and are otherwise proud supporters of Asian cuisine and culture,” said Lee in her post. “This incident is in no way to be used to fuel race-based hate or prejudice, and I will have an issue with anyone who uses these posts to fit that narrative.”
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