Last update - 00:00 18/02/2008
Report: Tel Aviv branch of top cafe chain suffering rat infestation
By Rina Rosenberg, Haaretz Correspondent
An expose on the investigative journalism program "Shomer Masach" has turned up evidence that a Tel Aviv branch of the popular Aroma restaurant chain is suffering from a rat infestation.
The investigation began after an employee of the restaurant complained to the Health Ministry about the rat infestation, leading the ministry to pay a visit to the branch. The restaurant assured ministry officials that they had performed a comprehensive extermination and the problem was taken care of.
In spite of the management's assurances, about two weeks ago, producers at "Shomer Masach" received video clips made by employees on their cellular phones which reportedly showed rats and mice scurrying across the restaurant's floors and food preparation surfaces, gnawing at baked goods, and running across loaves of bread left on trays to rise overnight.
The episode, set to air on Tuesday night, reportedly also shows hidden camera footage of the employee who filmed the rodents showing the manager the footage and being told to erase it immediately.
The alleged infestation occurred at a branch on Gordon Street in Tel Aviv which belongs to Aroma Tel Aviv, a company entirely separate from the national Aroma chain.
In a statement issued this week, Aroma Tel Aviv clarified that each branch operates independently, and the problem is not consistent with the usual state of Aroma branches. Nonetheless, they vowed to examine the issue fully and to treat it with the utmost seriousness and severity. The company says it has carried out regular pest removal in the past and will continue to do so in a manner to ensure problems like this do not return.