Chinese Buffet In Hot Water Over Garlic Stomp

(Rockland County, New York) -- A restaurant in Rockland County is under fire for the way one employee broke apart some garlic.
The Rockland County Health Department has hit the Great China Buffet in Nanuet with two violations after Dan Bareto took pictures of an employee apparently stomping on garlic with his shoes on.

Senior public health sanitarian John Stoughton says the agency does not consider a person's shoe a proper instrument to use in food preparation.

Health inspectors went to the eatery after an employee at a nearby store alerted them to the alleged unsanitary act. He also had the pictures to prove what he saw.

Great China Buffet owner Jiang Shu insists the garlic was thrown away and never served -- which is impossible to prove. Eyewitness News was told the employee was fired. Customers were, well, they're not happy.

Officials say the restaurant has been fined in the past, but since 2001 has had satisfactory inspections. But health officials say after seeing at the picture, say they will keep a close eye on the restaurant.

"I Put My Buns on His Buns."

BURNET, Texas - Jamie Perez, 23, is a cook at Andy’s Landing in the town of Burnet. On Oct 20th, Burnet Police Chief Nelson entered the establishment and ordered a hamburger. Upon eating the hamburger, Nelson noticed Perez and another cook watching him eat it. Yeah, that’s not a good sign no matter who you are, but especially if you are a cop. On Monday, police walked into the kitchen and arrested Perez. On Tuesday, they arrested James Ledesma,33. They were both charged with tampering with a consumer product. Wanna know what Perez did? Of course you do.



Seems as if Perez wiped his buttocks with the bun, put the vegetables in his mouth before placing them on the burger, and then as a final touch, spit and blew snot on it. Tasty, huh? Tampering with a consumer product is a second-degree felony, so these guys may not be looking at a slap on the wrist. Especially since medical tests have not come back on the Chief to see if he may have contracted anything from ingesting Perez’s bodily fluids. No one would have probably ever found out about this, had Perez not told someone who in turn, told police.

Aside from Chief Nelson, the restaurant is suffering from this incident as well. Even though Nelson has tried to tell patrons in the town that this incident was directly aimed at him, as he had run ins with Perez in the past, business has been slow at Andy’s Landing.

“I hope that our customers do keep coming in, and trust us to continue preparing their food,” said General Manager Tiffany Tappe, who also stated that Perez was their best cook. “It’s the last thing we ever expected,” she said.

More charges may be pending, as they are discussing drawing blood from Perez to see if he may have any communicable diseases.

Philadelphia's Dirty Birds (Part 1)

Philadelphia's Dirty Birds (Part 2)

KFC.....Finger Licking Good

A TV news crew has photographed rats scampering across the floor of a KFC and Taco Bell store in Manhattan's trendy Greenwich Village. The footage, aired locally in the New York market, sent city health inspectors scurrying to the scene. It also produced a contrite statement from parent company Yum! Brands, which called the incident "completely unacceptable." The footage, shot through a window of the restaurant, shows several rats running around on the floor.

Local restaurant officials said construction was going on at the time, and may have attracted the rodents. The restaurant was closed at the time of the taping. In fact, the restaurant may be closed for some time. City health inspectors ordered the facility to shut its doors pending further investigation.

Rats have been an ongoing problem in New York City. While they're a common sight in subway tunnels, some New Yorkers expressed shock as seeing them running freely through a fast food restaurant.

Inside Edition's Rat Patrol Hits The Big Apple.

INSIDE EDITIONs Rat Patrol took to the streets of Manhattan between 1:00 AM and 4:00 AM peering their cameras and flashlights into the windows of a wide variety of eateries from fast food places to fine dining establishments.

Summer is breeding season for rats, so it wasn't surprising to find rats all over the place in Manhattan. What was shocking was where the rodents were found - dining after-hours inside some of New York City's most popular restaurants.

On any given night you'll see celebrities like Jennifer Lopez and Heidi Klum dining at Da Silvano, one of the trendiest restaurants in Manhattan. But when the "A-list" customers go home, INSIDE EDITION found other guests who don't have a reservation.

On three different visits, rats were seen feasting on scraps left all over the dirty kitchen floor and climbing into crates holding glasses.

Bruce Colvin, an expert on rats and a world-renowned ecologist, said after the restaurant closes for the night, it's time for the second course - "to feed the rats."

Ed Hayes, a lawyer for Da Silvano, said because of INSIDE EDITION's findings, the owner is throwing out every bit of food in the restaurant and blamed any rodents on nearby construction and recent renovations.

"When you have this kind of construction, you have a lot more rodents then you did, so we're basically going to take the place apart and make sure that we don't have any problems," Hayes told INSIDE EDITION.

Not too far away from Da Silvano is the Blue Water Grill - a pricey seafood restaurant in Manhattan's bustling Union Square. It's ranked by Zagat survey as one of the top ten most popular eateries in all of New York City.

Apparently the rats think so too. On the night INSIDE EDITION's Rat Patrol visited, two rats had the run of the place. Colvin says they are juvenile rats, an indication there may be a family of rats living inside.

When asked if he was aware of the restaurant's rodent problem, the manager declined to speak with INSIDE EDITION. But in a statement the restaurant said they have "never failed a Department of Health inspection." And "every measure necessary will be taken to address this random situation," which they say, "does not, in any way, suggest an infestation."

The Rat Patrol also discovered a rat performing some impressive acrobatics in the small dining room of the Hour Glass Tavern, a favorite spot for the theater crowd near Times Square.

The owner says the restaurant was actually closed for renovations during the time the rats were spotted, and they have a weekly exterminator.

In just a few nights, the Rat Patrol found rodents in 22 restaurants. Most surprising was finding them in one of the world's most famous steakhouses - the venerable, Peter Luger Steak House in Brooklyn.

The mouth-watering steak is immensely popular with New Yorkers, tourists and celebrities alike. As a plaque in the restaurant boasts, the best meal of Johnny Carson's entire life was prepared in Peter Luger's kitchen.

Which is exactly where INSIDE EDITION spotted the rats on two different nights.

Marilyn Spiera, one of the owner's of Peter Luger Steakhouse told INSIDE EDITION the kitchen was spotless and blamed the problem on extensive recent renovations.

When told that experts and health officials say if you can't keep rats out of your restaurant you shouldn't be open, Spiera said, "My opinion is we don't have rats in our restaurants as a rule. We have a huge cleaning crew, and we have professional exterminators and I believe we have it very much under control."

And according to Colvin, once the rats get into a building, and into a kitchen, it can be a lot of work. "There're solutions to problems with rats. No one should surrender, and too often that's what happens," he said.

In total, INSIDE EDITION witnessed rodents in more than 22 New York eateries including:

Abitinos Pizzeria,233 Bleecker Street (Corner of Carmine and Bleecker)

Da Silvano, 260 Sixth Avenue (Between Bleecker and Houston)

Yuen Yuen Restaurant, 61 Bayard Street

HSF, 46 Bowery Street (Between Bayard and Canal)

Pecan Fine Foods and & Coffee, 130 Franklin Street (Between Hudson and Varick)

Senor Swankys, 142 Bleecker Street (Between Laguardia & Thompson)

Hello Berlin, 626 Tenth Avenue. (Between 44th and 45th)

Hour Glass Tavern, 375 W. 46th Street (Between 9th and 10th)

Blue Water Grill, 31 Union Square West (At 16th)

Friend of a Farmer Country Caf, 77 Irving Place (Between 18th and 19th)

Pongal, 1154 First Avenue (Between 63rd and 64th)

Hawaii Sushi, 1477 Second Ave. (Between 76th and 77th)

Blue Ribbon, 97 Sullivan Street (Between Prince and Spring)

Ottomanellis, 395 Amsterdam (Near 79th)

McDonalds, 26 Bowery Street (Between Bayard and Pell)

Peter Luger Steak House, 178 Broadway (Brooklyn)

Vynl, 507 Columbus Avenue (Between 84th and 85th)

Abitino's owner admitted that they have had a problem with mice in the past but have since corrected it. "Everybody in New York has mice. It's impossible not too. But Abitino's takes pride in the cleanliness of all our pizzeria locations."

The owner of Yuen Yuen told INSIDE EDITION he has since caught the rat we saw and plugged up the hole from where it came.

At Pecan the owner said, "Do you think you can come up with a restaurant in Manhattan that doesn't have this problem?" The owner also tells INSIDE EDITION he will address the problem immediately and takes great pride in keeping his restaurant exceptionally clean.

At Senor Swanky's a manager tells INSIDE EDITION, "We have an exterminator that comes in every week. The week that you came [to our restaurant] our exterminator never showed up, so now we have a new exterminator and there shouldn't be rodents any more."

At Hello Berlin one of the owners tells INSIDE EDITION they have a regular extermination program they stand by.

The McDonald's franchise owner released a statement to INSIDE EDITION saying, "Restaurant cleanliness and sanitation are very important to me and my restaurant employees We have an outstanding sanitation record with the New York Health Department. The isolated incident has been resolved."

At Pongal the owner tells INSIDE EDITION he was not aware of a problem and they have a regular pest control program saying, "I've never seen a rodent."

At Blue Ribbon the manager tells INSIDE EDITION he was unaware of a problem and has an exterminator that comes regularly saying, "This is news to me."

At Ottomanelli's the owner tells INSIDE EDITION, "It's a big problem in the city. Sometimes we do see mouse droppings. We put glue traps down and regular traps. We try to control everything as best we can and we keep all of our locations exceptionally clean."

Man Finds Maggots In Candy.

Bakerfield, California(October 3, 2007)John Madeiros purchased two packages of peanut caramel clusters at a Bakersfield 99-cent store on Ming Avenue, expecting some tasty treats. Just as he was about to take a bite, he discovered maggots swarming over the chocolate, peanut and caramel clusters.

"I grabbed one of them and put it towards my mouth not looking, and when I was ready to put it in I noticed worms crawling on it," Madeiros said.

Medeiros returned the candies to the 99-cent store and received a full refund and apology. The retailer said it is pulling the candy from its store shelves nationwide.

Standard Candy, which manufactures GooGoo Clusters, told Bakersfield station KERO-TV they are looking into the matter. Medeiros said he's relieved no one else will face a stomach-turning moment.

McDonald's Customer Spots Shakes Made From Soiled Towel Bucket.

ORLANDO, Fla. -- An Orlando McDonald's restaurant is under fire for an alleged mistake involving milkshakes. At the restaurant in the Lake Nona area, a customer said she saw McDonald's employees pouring milk into the milkshake machine using a bucket with the words "Soiled Towels Only" on the side of it. The restaurant has generated some hygienic concerns in the past. In August 2007, state investigators found 12 different sanitary violations at the location.

Inside Edition's Rat Patrol Shines The Light On Rodents Running Wild In Boston Restaurants.

Boston- The television show, Inside Edition, investigative report "Rat Patrol" has turned its sights on Boston and has discovered Bean town is loaded with rats. INSIDE EDITION found the disease-carrying vermin dining in dumpsters, scampering down sidewalks and feasting inside restaurants.

During its pre-dawn patrol, INSIDE EDITION found rodents running wild in restaurants from the Back Bay to the North End. Boston's Inspection Services Department says it is simply unacceptable for rats to be scampering around various Boston restaurants and that they educate all restaurant managers in prevention of vermin.

Kitchens should be kept clean It should be top priority when you're done with food prep, done with the night floors cleaned, trash should be taken out and contained properly, says John Meaney, Boston's Principal Health Inspector.

Despite all of the efforts of the health department, INSIDE EDITION found rodents in a number of restaurants simply by standing on the sidewalk and shining a flashlight through the window. The Rat Patrol even found vermin in some of the nations most popular chains including coffee Mecca Starbucks in the South End and upscale seafood restaurant McCormick & Schmick's in historic Quincy Market.

I think the average person would be quite surprised how frequently restaurants have problems with rodents and other pests, says Bruce Colvin, international expert on vermin.

At Ruth's Chris Steak House, the rat patrol wasn't able to see inside the restaurant from the sidewalk but discovered that poorly maintained dumpsters just steps from the kitchen door behind the restaurant were fueling a serious rat problem outside.

INSIDE EDITION also showed the video of the dumpsters overflowing with food and the vermin feasting and running amuck to John Meaney.

Unacceptable, Its something that we will talk to them about. Well be down there today, says Meaney, who arrived at Ruth's Chris a half hour later with a team of inspectors and issued a violation for the overflowing dumpsters.

In total INSIDE EDITION witnessed rodents in eight Boston eateries including:

McCormick & Schmick's, North Market Building, (Quincy Market)
Express, 227 Hanover Street (North End)
Starbucks, 627 Tremont Street (South End)
China Pearl, 9 Tyler Street (Chinatown)
Cappys II, 309 Huntington Avenue
Trident Booksellers & Café, 335 Newbury Street (Back Bay)
Thai Basil, 132 Newbury Street (Back Bay)
Assaggio, 29 Prince Street (North End)

Mice on the Loose in Trendy Yogurt Shop.

New York- Nowadays, when people see rodents at restaurants, they aren't necessarily calling 911 immediately, it seems the first call is to the local news station! A couple strolling by the Upper East Side Pinkberry at 82nd and 2nd Avenue called a local television news station when they saw mice running around the store at 2:30AM. WABC 7 observed, "The mice seemed to prefer the counter area. It is just feet from the yogurt machine where the fresh-fruit toppings are kept." One Pinkberry customer, who had waited 20 minutes on line, told the New York Post “As long as there are no rats in the ice cream, I'm OK." And, plus, mice are way cuter than rats.

Pinkberry issued the following statement to WABC 7: "Since our store is regularly inspected and sanitized, we're shocked and puzzled by this footage. We're investigating thoroughly and have already re-sanitized all of our New York stores.

Customer Finds Roach in Water Glass.

San Antonio, Texas -- A customer called the health department to complain about finding a dead roach in their water glass at Casa Sol on Fredericksburg road near Callaghan. The health inspector followed up and found there was indeed a pest control problem.

Since this wasn't a routine inspection, but rather, a follow-up to a complaint, Casa Sol was not given an inspection score. However, the inspector did find roach eggs near where they keep the glasses.

When we stopped by we were greeted by the kitchen manager, Arturo Mares, who says after the complaint, the restaurant immediately switched to a new pest control company.

"The problem was the company," said Mares. "We switched companies and I think we're done with this problem."

Mares was happy to show us the kitchen area. It has been treated with insecticide that was actually inserted into the walls.

The health inspector approved of the changes and commended Casa Sol on a quick response to the complaint.

Rat Videotaped In Local Chinese Restaurant Window

It's one of Toronto's most popular Chinese restaurants, but for those walking by Happy Seven were given plenty of reason to feel sad and scared.

Despite passing a health inspection just days earlier, the Chinatown establishment and fixture of the Spadina strip was home to a least three rats, running free inside the dining room for customers and CityNews cameras to see.

Happy Seven management wouldn't speak to CityNews on camera, but Toronto Public Health was notified and promised an investigation. Should their people find any proof of rodent infestation the restaurant would be closed immediately.

"If you find rodents walking around the kitchen with rodent droppings possibly contaminating cooking surfaces that is an immediate potential health threat and we would shut a restaurant down," promised TPH Chair John Filion.

But that's not an option Filion and his crew has. They scoured the restaurant late Wednesday afternoon and reportedly found no evidence of a rat infestation, meaning they have no authority to shut the place down even after watching our video evidence.

"No rat droppings, no problem whatsoever with compliance with public health standards," Filion told Andrea Piunno Wednesday night. "It's kind of a mystery."

And until that mystery is solved with the official discovery of some vermin on the premises, the restaurant and countless business around it remain open to the public.