A Vancouver restaurant has unequivocally denied claims it served a diner clam chowder with a dead rat in it.
Last Thursday, Instagram user pisun_ne_ne shared a video of the alleged incident, showing what appears to be a rodent being pulled from a dish served by Crab Park Chowdery.
The post is the first to be shared by the account in more than a year and while its caption includes a link to the user’s “active page”, many have cast doubt on its authenticity.
HuffPost reached out to both accounts for comment however neither responded by the time of publication.
“Today my friend ordered Manhattan clam chowder and had a little surprise in it ― A RAT,” the caption reads. “It’s an awful feeling, it’s not a fly or a bug it’s a fucking big rat boiling in the soup pot, which means my friend was not the only [sic] who had a chance to try it ... My active page is @adelaiiine if you think this one is fake.”
In the video, an unidentified individual can be heard asking if the rat “is supposed to be in here.”
In a statement released Tuesday, the restaurant said an investigation had “unequivocally concluded there is no way this incident could have happened in our kitchen or as a result of any actions by our staff prior to being prepared and served.”
The restaurant has also encouraged any concerned diners to tour its facilities.
“If any questions remain we implore you to come down and see our operation first hand, the safety measures in place and to meet our staff,” the statement read. “You will see for yourself just how much we all love what we do, our commitment to excellence and why we are so loved by the community.”
Crab Park Chowdery did not immediately respond to HuffPost’s request for comment. However owner Ashton Phillips told the Vancouver Sun last week that it was “impossible” for the rat to have made its way into the meal.
“We are deeply apologetic. We will continue to do everything we can to get to the bottom of this,” he said. “This business has been my dream. And we are a highly rated restaurant. It has been a really tough day ... we are tying to do the right thing.”
Citing the Vancouver Coastal Health Authority, multiple local news outlets reported that the soup had been prepared offsite in a building belonging to another restaurant, Mamie Taylor’s.
While that restaurant was closed for one day to allow officials to inspect it, it has since reopened. Owner Ron Oliver told Canada’s CTV News that he planned to sever ties with the Crab Park Chowdery following the incident.
“It’s nice to feel like I’ve been vindicated, it wasn’t us that was the problem. But at the same time, [Friday] was a very difficult day,” he said, according to the network.
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