Workers at two popular Chinese restaurant chains have been caught by undercover videos reusing leftover food and handling tables with dirty hands, according to a report.
Man Ling Restaurant, which has more than 1,000 locations across China and is considered “healthy,” apologized to the public after the outrageous video.
Staff were filmed using leftover food to cook congee – a classic Chinese rice porridge – as well as other outrageous practices, the South China Morning Post reported on Wednesday. They were also blocked, putting their unwashed hands on the grub.
An employee even removed the pork ribs from a pot of remaining soup and used them to cook Chinese yams and meat offal for other diners, according to the report.
“Yes, he stayed,” a Man Ling worker told the Fujian Television undercover reporter when asked if there was a food safety issue.
“It’s okay to cook again.”
Man Ling, known for its low-cost offerings, sells more than 180 million bowls of leave each year, according to a food order analysis application.
Its store in Fuzhou, southeast China, was closed earlier this week following the scandal, and the chain apologized Monday for “disappointing” its customers, according to the South China Morning Post.
Sanmi Congee, which is another renowned restaurant chain with more than 1,100 stores across China, has also been investigated and exposed for hiring people without a health certificate and similar health practices at one of its stores in the city.
Sanmi Congee, another popular chain with more than 1,100 locations across China, was also exposed in the undercover report on the employment of people without a health certificate and similar unhealthy practices at one of its restaurants in Fuzhou.
He issued a similar guilt a day later, acknowledging on Tuesday the “hygiene and safety hazards” revealed by the undercover reporter. The store was closed and removed from online applications, according to the report.
Both brands are owned by separate companies in Shanghai and have enjoyed recent business growth due to their cheap deals amid food delivery madness.