Instances of pests in delivered food have become distressingly common. It is advisable to thoroughly inspect any delivered meal before consumption. Unfortunately, a 35-year-old lawyer from Prayagraj, Rajeev Shukla, visiting Mumbai recently, had a harrowing experience when he discovered a dead mouse and cockroaches in his Classic Veg Meal Box Regular ordered online from Barbeque Nation, a Worli-based restaurant.
Hospitalization Follows Consumption of Contaminated Meal
On January 8, during his visit to Mumbai, Shukla placed an online order with Barbeque Nation. To his shock, upon consuming the meal, he found a dead mouse and cockroaches, particularly in the Dal Makhani. Subsequently, he developed food poisoning and had to be admitted to the B Y L Nair Hospital for over 75 hours due to health concerns.
Social Media Outcry and Complaint Lodged
Taking to social media platform X (formerly Twitter), Shukla shared images of the order bill, the meal box, the contaminated food, and his hospitalization. In his post, he described the incident and mentioned that he had not filed a complaint with the Nagpada police, urging for assistance.
I Rajeev shukla from prayagraj visited Mumbai, on 8th jan'24 night ordered veg meal box from BARBEQUE NATION, worli outlet that contained a dead mouse,hospitalised for 75+ hours.complaint has not been lodged at nagpada police not filing my FIR yet.
Please help 8285727949 pic.twitter.com/q3vWGfJyaY— rajeev shukla (@shukraj) January 15, 2024
I Rajeev shukla from prayagraj visited Mumbai, on 8th jan’24 night ordered veg meal box from BARBEQUE NATION, worli outlet that contained a dead mouse,hospitalised for 75+ hours.complaint has not been lodged at nagpada police not filing my FIR yet.
Please help 8285727949
Shukla further said,
“I wanted to explore Mumbai and so I did, coming all the way from Prayagraj but possibly, this might be my last trip. I am a Brahmin and a pure vegetarian, but when my Barbeque Nation order arrived, it gave me the shock of my life. The food contained a dead rat and cockroaches. I suffered food poisoning and got admitted to Nair hospital”
Shukla further mentioned that he promptly sent an email to Barbeque Nation, expressing his dissatisfaction with the contaminated food. Accompanying the email was an image depicting the presence of a rat in the dal, as shared by Shukla.
Received food with rat and insect and, unfortunately, I consumed its major portion.
This is just not done since I am a vegetarian, also this is intolerable and I feel like puking; vomited already and it’s continuously running in my head and giving me nausea. Food business is (intended) to keep us alive and not to kill us.
Barbeque Nation’s Response
Shukla revealed that he promptly emailed Barbeque Nation to complain about the adulterated food. However, he claimed that no one from the restaurant visited him during his hospitalization, and he had to bear the treatment costs. Barbeque Nation responded through ‘Manoj CRS Team,’ expressing apologies and assuring prompt resolution. Six days later, Shukla filed a First Information Report (FIR) against the owner, manager, and chef of Barbeque Nation at Nagpada Police Station.
Dear Guest, We sincerely apologize for any inconvenience you may have experienced and appreciate you taking the time to bring it to our attention. I would like to assure you that your concerns are of the utmost importance to us. Mr Paresh from our Regional Team is already in touch with you to understand the details of the situation and work towards a resolution. Please be assured that we are committed to addressing your concerns promptly and effectively. Our team is actively working on finding a resolution that meets your expectations. Regards”
Barbeque Nation’s Clarification
In response to the allegations, Barbeque Nation issued a clarification denying any internal lapses during their investigation or inspections by relevant authorities. The statement emphasized their commitment to cooperation with further inspections or audits by concerned authorities.
“We are in receipt of a complaint from one Mr Rajeev Shukla with an allegation that there were pests found in the food he had ordered from one of our outlet on the 8th Jan, 2024. We have done our internal investigation and found no such internal lapses. Further, we have also got an inspection done from the concerned authorities and have not found any such instances as alleged. We will fully cooperate with the concerned authorities on any further inspection/audit”
Ongoing Concerns in the Food Industry
This incident follows recent reports of food-related issues, such as a Jain passenger being served chicken in a vegetarian meal on an Air India flight. It is a reminder of the importance of maintaining stringent quality control measures in the food industry.