Ratatouli
 

Ratatouille strikes again.

This was a major oversight and traumatizing to the person so unfortunate to find it...yet, it happens.....usually not so far as getting on the plate though. People who have lived on farms or in the country know mice are everywhere and can get in the tiniest places. My girlfriend's husband found a mouse skeleton in a major brand beverage....after he drank half of it. He can't mention the name because they paid him off.

Things will and do happen here in TV especially where there is the most valuable commodity to all life, food. We hope it won't happen to us and after awhile we will all be eating out again without scrutinizing every morsel on our plates.

They will have to figure out the market price. :beer3:

I guess they didn't wash the salad very well...ugh....

I am hoping it's was bagged lettuce. Salads are usually prepped early morning and put in the walkin on trays. If the are not using bagged lettuce then it's a whole new ball game

Bay Kid. I don't wash lettuce unless it is leaf lettuce. And usually even that is pre washed now.


I admit I was skeptical and I hadn't heard of "Next Door" and I thought maybe Dotti had got an email of one of those rampant rumors that often go around here.


I guess I felt that way just simply because in all of my life I hadn't ever discovered anything in my food but a hair. YUCK.


I remember there was a post on this forum from someone who posted only once that they had found a serving spoon handle in their vegetables at another restaurant owned by the same group.


I rely a lot on information from valid posters and Dotti is certainly a valid poster. She is not a trouble maker or a pot stirrer. But every once in awhile we all get information that isn't correct and report it. Now I know what Next Door is, but can't seem to get accepted. They say my email address is invalid...I am doing something wrong. My village is not one listed so that may be the roadblock.


So I hope no one ever has a mouse in their salad. I am very squeamish and I must admit that it has really made me want to never eat out. But I know I will.


YUCK.

IF this happened (and in case you are wondering, that's a big if) then it was clearly an accident and it appears from the posting that the manager did everything possible under the circumstances to make it right.

It might have happened because of:

(1) a disgruntled restaurant employee with an ax to grind
(2) anyone can carry anything into a restaurant and place it in their own food for multiple reasons, not the least of which is a free meal or their own ax to grind
(3) placed in the food by the supplier by accident, or by a disgruntled employee there

I've eaten many meals at Evans Prairie, Bonifay, Belle Glade, and Scooples and I'll eat many more. I'd go there right now. Don't judge by whether a mistake was made. We all do that and wish we hadn't. Judge by how a mistake is corrected.

My sainted mother (a candidate for canonization because of putting up with the antics of my brother an me) once made a big pot of green beans for a dinner. She bought the beans fresh, snapped them herself, and cooked them the country way with a ham hock and on heat for hours. We all ate them greedily until getting to the bottom of the pot and finding what we used to call a grub worm in the bowl. What can you do but moan and then laugh? And we ate the very next meal she cooked.

Bottom line its their fault I wouldnt set foot in any of those places. They run decent places out and keep the dumps.

If said mouse was indeed the size of a finger tip, I'd say it would be pretty darn hard to notice it in a fast-moving kitchen. There have been several reports over things ending up in bags of lettuce. Not surprised to see this happen, and it could happen at any restaurant.

I like Next Door. Seems to be more factual oriented than other local sites. I like it also because it doesn't seem to be monopolized by a small minority.

It looks like Next Door is only open for the Group set up by the person that creates that Group. I just started one for Lynnhaven. Drew a map for homes I thought were in Lynnhaven.

I now have to get 10 Lynnhaven neighbors into the Group I set up or someone else will set up a new Lynnhaven Group. They gave me a three weeks to get my 10 neighbors. I have until November 26, 2015.

That's all I know about this Next Door so far. Unless you have a person who experienced something firsthand in your Group, I would not think that Next Door would be all that reliable for matters that might end up in a court of law.

It would be good for setting up dates for golf, block parties, football watching events, trips to the movies, sharing recipes, Candy Crush Saga advice, etc.

It can be connected to your Facebook page. Like Facebook you have to go through various verification procedures with respect to your real e-mail address, physical address, phone number, etc.

Critters can be in prepackaged salad. I bought a bag of Fresh Express Salad from Publix. There was a LIVE horse fly in it. We called Fresh Express to let them know and they sent us some coupons.

I too hope the salad at EP was prepackaged.

ouch.

seemed to touch a nerve.

We luv ya Gracie.

Actually, it also seems to be that a person could post on Next Door a lot. And, it seems about as factual as what is said at a dinner party in some neighborhood. Not sure if you can edit what you post on there? There's the transparency of using your real name but Facebook has that as well. And people can post a lot on Facebook.

Back to the mouse in the salad? There does not seem to be any information about the size of it?

My Mom had a nut/screw in her sandwich last year and it partially broke her tooth. The restaurant gave her a life time pass for free meals there. It was a small screw/nut. I am not going to say which one this happened at as it is settled via private agreement-- the lifelong pass. I bet she still though checks for things in the sandwiches at that restaurant. And they rarely go there. I have never ate at that restaurant myself.

I might have posted about it on TOTV but do not remember. She was with a group of female Lynnhaven golfers on the 19th hole so to speak even if they only play the 9 hole golf courses. The 10th hole.

If you do not get nextdoor, it is because nobody in your community organized it.
Brouhaha leaves me nonplussed.
...you have not been excluded by any act of commission.

You can set one up in your neighborhood. You just need nine more people to join over the 21 day trial period.

There are some other neighborhoods close to Lynnhaven with about 90 people in their Next Door Groups.

Never eat in a restaurant? Do you think this s the first time this happened? At any restaurant?

I gotta ask. Did they go ahead with their main course?

Who is they?

Will continue patronage and do so more often.

Lawsuit? really Lawsuit? What damages are there here? A severe onset of restaurantaphobia? We are all eating bugs and feces all the time, and squirrel hairs and spiders and undoubtedly there have been mouse parts in your meals. Gives you fiber and your immune system something to do on a slow day.

Defect Levels Handbook

Typical reason for the interest in insect parts, rodent hair and feces

"DEFECT SOURCE: Insect fragments - pre/post harvest and processing insect infestation. Rodent hair - post harvest and/or processing contamination with animal hair or excreta
SIGNIFICANCE: Aesthetic


Ain't gonna hurt ya. And no, I don't need you bringing me all your dead mice for my next meal. As Billy Pilgrim reminds us: So it goes.

Thank you. I know I needed to hear that...but it will go on and on and on.

A mouse in one's salad is not Kosher....or Halal.

Yes. I always expect to find dead animals in my meals when I go out to eat.

Yep, beef, poultry, fish, lamb, pork, and the occasional reptile or amphibian. Mice, only if I am on Naked and Afraid, which won't happen because I am afraid to get naked.

If it was alive, I would be very upset. However a dead mouse would mean that it was put in the salad. By a person, who works there. Someone who was really angry at the place.
Why you ask? Because the salad was made in the kitchen. Mixed in the kitchen so someone had to have put it in there. A live mouse could run into, That is possible if it was trying to hide. But a dead one, think about it.

Our neighborhood uses next door. It shows a map with each house that has joined. Lists your name and your address. Most are setting up new group, looking or selling something. Or info on the neighborhood gathering.

Was the Mouse dead or alive?

Could have happened at the packaging plant. They use pre bagged lettuce.

I'm just wonderin'...

Would those folks that are showing such unbridled support and understanding and continued patronage...
would they feel exactly the same way if the restaurant was off-campus, and one that they don't have some linkage to?

Just appears that some here are treadling very lightly with their commentary. for whatever reasons.

I am completely neutral and have eaten at EP quite a few times. My stomach turned when first reading of this issue and still does. Sorry, will be some time till we return as I could not imagine diving into my salad there without having that image. Where it was 'sourced' local issue or not, fair or not fair, this is a huge ding - should not have happened, should have been caught in prep - and NEVER show on a consumer's plate. period.

Just think that many are giving a pass, and no doubt have spoken with the manager/owner - and showing their support. That may be honorable to a degree, but sorry doesn't cut it here.

Your post is compelling. I wish I had been able to access the "Next Door" posts for myself. Blue Ash's opinion carries great weight with me, although I never hesitate to debate his politics. We are swayed here on this forum. And that is both good and bad.

For those with no access to Nextdoor Neighbor (Gilchrist). I just went in and see that there was a posting from 1 hour ago - by the operator of Evan's Prairie (and other CCs here at TV).

I would think that he would approve my copy/paste of his posting since there are so many readers of this topic here on ToTV. Since Mr. Karimipour named names on the public site, I will not delete them here.

I, for one appreciate his forthrightness and communication on this matter.
Here's his posting (word - for - word):
----------------------------------------

Fred Karimipour from Valiant Villagers 56m ago
Dear Neighbors,
My name is Fred Karimipour and I live in The Village of Charlotte right off of Hillsborough.
I'm also the operator of Evans Prairie country club and others.
I have been wanting to respond to your comments and concerns, but wanted to make sure I had all the facts, and had done my Due diligence.
Let me begin by saying that what Mr. Brian Emigh has reported is True.
Once I leaned of this, we immediately pulled the product and reviewed our process.

I immediately contacted my supplier, which is a National Company, to raise the flag "stop sale".
I then contacted the restaurant inspector with The State of Florida and requested an inspection.
I also asked Steritech, a third party inspector, to come and perform an additional inspection.
I am pleased to report that both private and government inspection have found our operation to be impeccable!
Both these reports are available for your review and I will be glad to meet with any individual that has any concerns. I have found honesty and transparency are virtues that have served me well. If you'd like to learn more or would like to contact me directly you can reach me at
Fred@freshmadegroup.com, or call/text me on my cell phone: 407-256-5558

I will finish by saying I am very sorry for what has occurred. It has humbled me as the voice in our industry about food safety and realizing it can even happen to my organization. I am very proud of my Team and its dedication to food safety and the result of their commitment and hard work were verified today by the state inspectors.
I believe our reaction to a situation literally has the power to change the situation itself.
Therefore, I'm making it my mission to petition the USDA to reevaluate how they harvest Spring Mix (Mesculine)
Again, a special Thank You to Mr. Brian Emigh for his Kindness and Compassion!
-------------------------------------

NOTE - I also see that the diners that had this incident happen to them made a posting 2 hours ago. Here it is word - for - word:
-------------------------------------

Joyce Graham & Brian Emigh from Valiant Villagers 2h ago
EVANS PRAIRIE UPDATE

To be totally fair to Evan's Prairie we need to post an update.

The Owner and Management at EP has called to check on our health and wellness every day since the incident. We appreciate that. We are truly sad about this whole incident since this was one of the places we frequently dined and brought our out of town guests to in the Villages. The owner called Brian to check on us and also to inform us of some of the changes they are making including changing the vendor they use for their produce.

We also receive a phone call from the Florida Licensing agency that does restaurant inspections and they said that they did an inspection today and found Evans's Prairie is a very clean restaurant and passed all inspections.

That said I didn't want this forum to turn in to something to bash EP, like I
said we had many good meals there and it was probably the restaurant and bar we frequented the most in the Villages.

You should watch your salad wherever you eat.....it could happen anywhere.
Me, I will discount the paranoia.

Mr Karimipour obviously is very upset about this situation. However, he appears to be a person of integrity and believes in doing the right thing. Given the steps he has taken - without being coerced - I will continue to patronize EP.

Just wondering.....
 

If the folks that had this experience had been a little more patient with management of EP......all of this unnecessary negative publicity and bashing could have been avoided.
It wasn't as if the were told to go away.

Washing is not necessary with many prepackaged salad mixes. Most come triple washed.

I'm giving them a pass because there are several documented instances of insects and sometimes mice showing up in bags of premade salad.

I've only been to EP twice, so I have no attachment to the restaurant.

They said they will self report, and will likely change suppliers if possible.

That's very true....but recently problems have occurred with lettuce. I have heard that it is advisable to wash it again before eating. I know I do.

Salad
 

Enough said - remove thread.

Must not have been good salad if it killed the mouse!