Restaurant’s stinking side
THIS week, the focal point of our hygiene campaign is a restaurant in the SS2 commercial area in Petaling Jaya.

We received a tip-off from a reader who frequents an Indian-Muslim restaurant in the area.

According to the reader, he was appalled to see some foreign workers preparing food by the drain at the outlet’s backlane.

“I could see cooking utensils left on the ground and bits of leftover food scattered all over the area.

“Not only that, the area where the food was being prepared was also very smelly. The men were cutting meat and vegetables on top of ice boxes and they did not seem to be bothered that their work area was close to a garbage chute,” he said.

After seeing how food was prepared at the backlane, the reader had sworn not to patronise the outlet again.

To verify his claims, we despatched our award-winning photographer Mohd Sahar Misni to capture the scene.

Our findings revealed the ugly truth in vivid colour.



The workers were oblivious to our presence in the backlane, nor did they appear uncomfortable to be seen working in such an unhygienic condition. They continued working as if no one was watching.

Apart from pest and rodent infestation in the area, public safety is now in question.

The workers have obstructed the backlane and the back doors of some of their neighbours with the heavy ice boxes. The place is obviously a fire trap.

This food outlet is by far, one of the filthiest we have ever come across. We thank our reader for pointing out the matter and will keep tabs on this with the Petaling Jaya City Council for further action.

In a seperate development, our Seremban office reported on Sept 17 that a restaurant was closed down by the state’s health department after 100 guests at a wedding dinner had fallen ill.

They ate pork contaminated with salmonella parathypi B bacteria which is a common cause of food poisoning.

The bride’s father succumbed to illness caused by consuming contaminated food several days later.

It was later discovered that six of the restaurant employees who handled the food had not been vaccinated for typhoid. Now, the question is: do we have to wait until its too late?

Prevention is the best approach and if you suspect unhygienic food preparation, do not hesitate to contact your local authority.

1 word. sux