The customer’s picture of the moldy bamboo mat that was uploaded to Facebook.
Noodle restaurant chain Marugami Seimen, a Japanese company with holdings based in several other countries around the world, came under fire on Facebook in early April for one customer’s picture of a moldy bamboo mat, on which zaru udon, a cold noodle dish popular in summer, had been served.
While the company tried to apologise to the customer using their official Facebook account, it seems that the storm has yet to subside, when a Gigazine news article published yesterday lead to the incident going viral across the Japanese-language Internet. Within hours of its publication, it was the most linked article on Ceron.jp, and had appeared on all the major 2ch.net blogs.
They say revenge is a dish best served cold: but are zaru udon really best served with mold?
From Gigazine.net:
Customer Discovers Underside of Bamboo Mat On Which Zaru Udon Were Served At Noodle Chain Restuarant Marugame Seimen Was Covered With Mold, Offical Apology Issued.
According to reports from readers, photographs were publicly uploaded on Facebook, along with the following:
“These are the zaru udon I ate yesterday. Although they tasted really good, there was a surprise waiting for me. The bamboo mat they were served on was covered in mold. I noticed this because from time to time, I turn the mat over. The restaurant manager was holding down jobs in several of the branches, and it looks like he’ll just be at another branch today without having dealt with this. It’s just unbelievable. Of course, the restaurant is open for business today. Children were also eating this, so it’s worrying…What could have happened to their hygiene regulations? I’m just praying that the other branches aren’t like this. I’m all the more disappointed because I really liked Marugame Seimen udon.”
There was a response to this on the official Facebook account of Marugame Seimen, and they apologised in the following way:
The Facebook apology from Marugame Seimen.
“Everyone,
We are so sorry for having worried you on this occasion.
We received a report from this branch on April 7, and on April 8 this post was brought to our attention. We confirm that in all 698 branches, no similar situations have arisen (as of April 8). On April 9, we carried out a review of the operational handbook and hygiene regulations in our branches, and have also completed staff guidance on this matter. At the present time, we can confirm that the hygiene issue that had concerned our customers has been addressed completely.
We are thankful for your bringing this to our attention, and have sincerely taken the matter on board. From this point on, we will continue to improve our standards, in the hope that everyone will continue to enjoy eating here without concern.
We thank you for your co-operation in this matter.”
As to whether or not the guidance has got through to the staff remains to be seen, but the truth will out over the coming season.
Comments from 2ch.net:
名無しさん＠１３周年：
Filthy.
名無しさん＠１３周年：
This is awful (´･ω･`)
名無しさん＠１３周年：
Moldy udon ww
名無しさん＠１３周年：
It’s worse than I’d imagined.
名無しさん＠１３周年：
Hmm.
Bacteria and stuff would be flying around in there.
名無しさん＠１３周年：
No problem.
They put the udon on the other side of the mat anyway.
名無しさん＠１３周年：
Soooo frightening.
名無しさん＠１３周年:
Just when I thought oh, there’s a little black mark left on there, it was real mold w
名無しさん＠１３周年：
Does this mean they were using them without washing them?
名無しさん＠１３周年：
Isn’t that the stuff that gives you immunity?
名無しさん＠１３周年：
There’d be no immediate effects on your health.
名無しさん＠１３周年：
Well if that’s all it is, then it’s no problem.
It’s much worse for your body to worry about things too much and end up getting stressed.
名無しさん＠１３周年：
Guess they weren’t washing them…
名無しさん＠１３周年：
The bamboo utensils we use in the summer are a breeding ground for mold.
They’ll go moldy even if you just leave them out after washing them.
名無しさん＠１３周年：
Perhaps they didn’t wash them. Or perhaps they washed them and didn’t use them for a while, so mold grew on them.
名無しさん＠１３周年：
The fact that the side facing upward was clean means that you purposely put the clean side up, chef.
That means that you did it knowing what state the underside of the bamboo mat was in.
Or perhaps, because the mat is just placed in the bowl, and you don’t even wash it, and just use it for days, that you don’t even notice until it’s become like this?
名無しさん＠１３周年：
I more or less sympathize with the restaurant because the things like that that we have in our house for zaru soba are in exactly the same state as that. And I washed them and dried them out properly.
名無しさん＠１３周年：
I guess that when they’re open, they use them so frequently they probably don’t even have the time to dry them, but if at the end of the day they washed them and dried them out, then they wouldn’t end up like that.
名無しさん＠１３周年：
From now on, whenever you eat udon or soba, it’s best to turn over the mat and check.
名無しさん＠１３周年：
There’s no top side or bottom side to a fucking bamboo mat, how could they not have noticed it? What the hell was this shitty company thinking?
名無しさん＠１３周年：
This poster would have better off leaking it to public health. Once a restaurant gets administrative guidance, it’s a crippling blow. You can totally tell that they’re trying to put out the fire as quick as they can before it spreads.
