One of the largest restaurant chains in Japan is the closure of its cleaning outlets, after two customer incidents have found pests, including a rat, in their food.
Sukiya, known for its rice beef dishes, announced the temporary closure after a insect was found by a client. Last weekend, he admitted that a rat was discovered in a bowl of Miso soup in January.
The chain, which has nearly 2,000 restaurants, said most of its sites are closed between March 31 and April 4 “to prevent external intrusion and internal infestation of pests and vermin”.
In a statement, he apologized for the “great drawback and concern caused”.
Rumors on the Rat-en-Miso incident has been circulating on social networks for weeks before Sukiya was forced to confirm that the rodent had been found “before he was eaten”.
The restaurant, in the city of Tottori, was temporarily closed. Sukiya said measures had been taken to tackle cracks in the building that could cause contamination.
He then announced that all of his outlets would be regularly checked for gaps and that the garbage would be refrigerated.
The company has now taken the most drastic measurement of the closure after the insect – widely reported would have been part or all of a cockroach – was found on Friday by a client in Tokyo.
The director apologized to the customer and gave it to reimbursement, he said. The restaurant was closed the same day and an antiparasitic company was called.
Sukiya is part of Zensho Holdings, which has a number of restaurant chains in Japan.
Last Monday, following the disclosure on the rat, its course of action fell before recovering later in the week. His actions will face a meticulous exam after the announcement on Saturday.
