While working late, a woman identified as Zhao ordered food from a fast-food chain in China. After two bites of the dish, the woman realised that it tasted stale. Stirring the rice porridge, she made the discovery of a worm-like object which turned out to be the tail of a rat, which was found intact in the container. The discovery led to the fast-food outlet being shut down due to health safety concerns.

Beijing resident Zhao had to order a meal since she was working late on December 23, 2019. She ordered the traditional rice-based congee dish containing jujubes and oats. On previous occasions, she had consumed the same dish from the same fastfood restaurant.

Using the food delivery service, ELEME, Zhao ordered the dish from the Mydo Pie chain outlet located in the Galaxy SOHO shopping-mall. Without giving it a second thought Zhao started consuming the food. However, she did not find the taste of the food to be how it is supposed to be. Something seemed "off" and after two bites, the disgusted woman decided to investigate.

rat mouse
rat found inside takeaway. iStock

Stirring the bowl, she discovered a "5-centimetre (2-inch) long earthworm-like object". The worm-like object turned out to be the tail of a rat that had been cooked whole inside the congee. With her 21 Chinese Yuan (£2.30) dish, Zhao had been served a sickeningly unwanted ingredient.

Zhao reported the incident and the Dongcheng District Administration for Industry and Commerce confirmed that there is an ongoing investigation into the matter.

The Daily Star reported that the food safety officials investigated the vats in which the food is cooked by the chain. At the same time, they also reviewed the CCTV footage, which did not show any rat falling into the cooking vats. The investigating team is also in touch with the food delivery company to ensure that they were not responsible for the incident.

While the investigating team is trying to find how the rat ended up in the dish, Mydo Pie's services remain suspended. The rat's unfortunate venture into a commercial kitchen did not have a Disney ending.