A normal lunch break turned into a complete nightmare for a woman in Hong Kong when she opened her takeout order and found a live, hairless baby rat wriggling inside, the South China Morning Post (SCMP) reported. The rat’s eyes were not even fully open, shocking footage showed. The woman, who reportedly works in the Kwai Chung district, had picked up a $5.60 (around Rs 531) lunch combo from Wa Jer Restaurant. The set came with satay beef rice noodles, a ham omelette, and a drink.
But when she got back to her desk at around 1:00 PM (local time) and pulled off the plastic lid, she saw a newborn, pink rodent squirming around in the thick satay sauce right on top of her noodles. It appeared that it was struggling to breathe.
An 18-second video clip of the incident quickly made the rounds online. In the footage, the tiny, hairless rat can be seen moving its legs while stuck in the brown sauce.
Social media users reacted with total disgust, calling out the serious health hazard.
Also read | War, Recession And Global Chaos? ‘China’s Nostradamus’ Makes 5 Grim Predictions
MULHER EM HONG KONG ABRE MASSA DE SATAY DE US$ 6 E ENCONTRA FILHOTE DE RATO DENTRO DA EMBALAGEM
Uma mulher relatou ter encontrado um pequeno rato recém-nascido se mexendo dentro da embalagem de sua massa. O caso levantou questionamentos sobre higiene e controle de qualidade. pic.twitter.com/1YJBSMgiX0
— Vox Liberdade (@VoxLiberdade) September 8, 2026
Following the shock, the customer promptly reported the incident to Hong Kong’s Food and Environmental Hygiene Department (FEHD). Health inspectors quickly visited the restaurant to run an inspection.
As per the report, the restaurant held a valid license and hadn’t received formal complaints over the past year, but authorities discovered poor overall hygiene during their surprise visit.
Officials collected food samples for testing and issued charges against the owner under local food safety regulations, ordering immediate clean-up measures.
Also read | Foreigner Moves To Delhi-NCR, Experiences Unique Culture Shock: ‘Should I Do The Same?’
“Regarding the suspected discovery of a baby rat in takeaway food, the department is conducting an investigation covering various aspects including food preparation, packaging, storage, and delivery,” a department spokesperson said as quoted by the media outlet.
“At this stage, it is inappropriate to jump to conclusions as to when and how the baby rat got into the food based solely on online video clips or the finding of a suspected baby rat in the food.”
The health official also said that the restaurant is cooperating with the authorities to figure out how something like this could have possibly happened.
