The Pizza Hut mouse joins the Taco Bell shell licker , the Wendy’s Frosty machine chugger , and the Starbucks/McDonalds toilet water ice stories on our list of reasons to stop eating out and finally learn to cook for ourselves.
It happened like this: In Manchester, 30-year-old John Pringle was walking past a city center Pizza Hut when he spotted a mouse through the window, darting back and forth between tables in plain view for anyone to see.
Pringle was shocked, but managed to snap a photo of the Pizza Hut mouse .
That particular Pizza Hut location, a popular spot for kids’ birthday parties, is usually pretty clean, having gotten a “very good” 5/5 rating when they were inspected by the Food Standards Agency in 2010. But according to Pringle, the mouse photographed was collecting bits of food off the floor hours before the restaurant was even open.
He recalled:
“I was walking to the train station at around 6.30am and I was shocked to see a mouse running around the restaurant floor eating crumbs. People eat in the restaurant unaware there could be a number of mice actually living inside the restaurant where food is prepared. I do eat at Pizza Hut every so often, but I’ll think twice about doing so now.”
He added:
“I hope the photo will ensure Pizza Hut removes any rodent problem and improves cleaning within the restaurant.”
A Pizza Hut spokesman confirmed that the restaurant did not close, but that the incident was dealt with.
“At Pizza Hut we take health and safety in all our restaurants very seriously and have fully investigated this isolated incident. We have taken a number of precautionary measures to swiftly rectify the situation and we are confident that it is under control and there is no risk to our customers or products.”
Still, the Pizza Hut mouse might be the straw that broke the camel’s back for us. I think I’ll invite my mom over to cook for me for dinner tonight.
[Top image via: Africa Studio , bottom image via: Manchester Evening News ]