The negative effect of cockroaches

[JMaddox]

A chippy was fined £2,500 for having cockroaches last week.

This got me thinking.. If this was your local / your favourite chip shop, would you continue to give them business after something like this has happened? I mean after they have been declared fit for business after getting pest control in there and been approved by food standards etc?

A fine is of course a blow for any business, but in the catering industry I assume that this negative attention must affect business in the long-run - purely down to trust.

Has anybody stopped going somewhere after a restaurant has had cockroaches (or rats etc.)?
Or is this something that you believe can be surpassed?

 

[Davek0974]

I think it *can* be surpassed but food standards etc cannot always alter the mindset of the business - once dirty, always dirty etc. Dirt and vermin is not usually an accident, its a way of life for some.

I would be very hungry before I returned.

 

[garyk]

A chinese restaurant in our town had an incident with a rat that fell into someones dessert. They never recovered and soon shut down. Would I go back in? probably not. There is no excuse for any food establishment to have this happen. Its poor hygiene and laziness simple as.

Gary

 

[sirbrandy]

It would definitely affect my choice of restaurant.

The number one consideration for me when it comes to those in the food industry is top of the line hygiene and cleanliness. That means there is no excuse for having even the smallest roach in there.

 

[JMaddox]

There is no excuse for any food establishment to have this happen. Its poor hygiene and laziness simple as.

Dirt and vermin is not usually an accident, its a way of life for some.

I would be very hungry before I returned.

I must agree with you guys here..
(Although I do know of one good example of a business that were pro-active with pest control and it somehow turned into a positive)

 

[The Byre]

I remember watching an American restaurant once, where the staff had just gassed the roaches and the place was nearly full. One guy said that he thought that there was something funny 'crunching' under his feet. We all looked down in the dim 'mood' lighting and saw that the floor was covered in dying roaches, crawling slowly across the floor.

One woman screamed and then another and another. Nearly all the customers fled to the car park outside and most just upped-sticks and went elsewhere.

 

[JMaddox]

The number one consideration for me when it comes to those in the food industry is top of the line hygiene and cleanliness. That means there is no excuse for having even the smallest roach in there.

I reckon that is about 80% of people's number one consideration, too!

 

[JMaddox]

I remember watching an American restaurant once, where the staff had just gassed the roaches and the place was nearly full. One guy said that he thought that there was something funny 'crunching' under his feet. We all looked down in the dim 'mood' lighting and saw that the floor was covered in dying roaches, crawling slowly across the floor.

One woman screamed and then another and another. Nearly all the customers fled to the car park outside and most just upped-sticks and went elsewhere.

Now THAT would get some major negative press attention here in the UK.. That's vile.

 

[JMaddox]

(Although I do know of one good example of a business that were pro-active with pest control and it somehow turned into a positive)

My local Indian was reported to have had rats in the kitchen last year. Living in London, this is a common thing (although still completely unacceptable). I remember they called in JG Pest Control on the same day that the story hit the local news- their vans were parked outside during rush hour, which got a lot of attention from people's cameras. Amazingly, this produced a positive response due to the pro-activeness of the business; it also gave them an excuse to slightly revamp the place and they were back open within a week. Now it's always busy in there (but I can't bring myself to go in)!

 

[jamesl94]

Personally I would never go back there. As stated before it's just pure disregard and laziness that would cause something like that, no excuse for it.

 

[JMaddox]

Personally I would never go back there. As stated before it's just pure disregard and laziness that would cause something like that, no excuse for it.

Would a re-brand help swerve your opinion? Or new staff? Or new management/owners?

 

[Ian J]

The Food Standards Agency publish all of their ratings http://ratings.food.gov.uk/ and they are also available as an app for phones etc.

I always check before trying somewhere new

 

[deniser]

I don't go anywhere that has less than a 5* hygiene rating displayed in the window. I definitely wouldn't go anywhere that had had a cockroach infestation.

 

[vvaannmmaann]

Seems yer man missed a trick.Call it "healthy" and voila!
Jamaican Stir Fried Cockroaches

Method:

Simmer cockroaches in vinegar then boil with butter, farina flour, pepper and salt to make a paste. Spread on buttered bread.

Stir Fried Cockroach

Ingredients:

4 or 5 cockroaches (recently frozen)

1 onion

1 red pepper

1 green pepper

1 tbs salt

1 tbs corn starch

4 tbs cooking oil

2 cups rice

Method:

1. Remove and discard the solid wing covering flaps and all legs of the cockroach.

2. Put the whole cockroaches into a pot of boiling oil and quickly fry for 15 seconds.

3. Heat a wok until hot. Add four spoons of oil and put all vegetables into it to stir fry for three minutes.

4. Put the half cooked cockroaches in to the wok and add salt and corn starch.

5. Serve on or with a bed of white rice.

Note: Yes, you can eat cockroaches! Just not the ones you find around your house. Contrary to popular belief, cockroaches can actually be very clean and tasty insects, especially if they are fed on fresh fruits and vegetables. They can be eaten toasted, fried, sauteed, or boiled. Madagascar Hissing Cockroaches have a taste and texture like greasy chicken

 

[Davek0974]

Seems yer man missed a trick.Call it "healthy" and voila!
Jamaican Stir Fried Cockroaches

Method:

Simmer cockroaches in vinegar then boil with butter, farina flour, pepper and salt to make a paste. Spread on buttered bread.

Stir Fried Cockroach

Ingredients:

4 or 5 cockroaches (recently frozen)

1 onion

1 red pepper

1 green pepper

1 tbs salt

1 tbs corn starch

4 tbs cooking oil

2 cups rice

Method:

1. Remove and discard the solid wing covering flaps and all legs of the cockroach.

2. Put the whole cockroaches into a pot of boiling oil and quickly fry for 15 seconds.

3. Heat a wok until hot. Add four spoons of oil and put all vegetables into it to stir fry for three minutes.

4. Put the half cooked cockroaches in to the wok and add salt and corn starch.

5. Serve on or with a bed of white rice.

Note: Yes, you can eat cockroaches! Just not the ones you find around your house. Contrary to popular belief, cockroaches can actually be very clean and tasty insects, especially if they are fed on fresh fruits and vegetables. They can be eaten toasted, fried, sauteed, or boiled. Madagascar Hissing Cockroaches have a taste and texture like greasy chicken

Amazing, wait a moment while I throw up

 

[jamesl94]

Would a re-brand help swerve your opinion? Or new staff? Or new management/owners?

In all honesty I wouldn't go back to the premises full stop, even under new management and completely refitted.