Have you seen celebrity chef and reality TV star Gordon Ramsay's Kitchen Nightmares? In the hit US TV series that ran for several seasons, the three-star British chef, who runs a chain of fine dining restaurants across the continent, is seen shouting abuse and yelling at kitchen staff, managers and owners across the US, complaining about dirty fridges, maggot-infested raw meat, food stored past its expiration date and staff with dismal hygiene standards.
Why are we discussing this British star today? Telangana's food safety commissioner is leading teams to raid kitchens of well-known eateries in Hyderabad and across the state known for foods like biryani, like an Indian version of Ramsay. Their raids have involved Rameshwaram Cafe, Karachi Bakery, Big Basket, Baskin Robbins, Naturals Ice Cream and many more.
An angry response from the owner of Rameshwaram Cafe went viral in which he admitted his staff's mistake and said it would never happen again. However, netizens were quick to point out that the quality is not up to par and the prices are clearly too high for the premium ingredients (and vegetables…what are premium vegetables, people ask) that Rameshwaram Cafe uses in its dishes. X User responses show that Rameshwaram Cafe may be famous in Bangalore, but it certainly isn't in Hyderabad.
In social media posts that have garnered a lot of attention over the past two weeks, teams and units deployed by the Telangana Food Safety Commissioner have uncovered facts that have been known for decades but were barely acted upon by those in power.The photos and videos posted by the official Telangana Food Safety Commissioner X handle will make you think twice about the food you order from your favourite restaurant.
So, what has CFS Telangana found in its searches so far?
- Poor hygiene, staff rarely wear hair caps, no medical records
- Cockroaches, rodents and insects around kitchens and storage areas
- Expired or bacteria-infested foods are not fit for human consumption
- Unlabelled ingredients
- No proper records of reused cooking oil
- No license or registration
- Violation of FSSAI Act
So far, only one establishment appears to be complying with the standards set by the authorities, Paradise Food Court in Masabtank.
- All ingredients, food items were covered and properly labelled as per FSSAI regulations.
- Pest control records are maintained by the FBO.
- Raw materials, semi-cooked and cooked foods were properly covered and labelled as per FSSAI regulations.
- The FBO was found to be supplying packaged water bottles of Dhaara brand and on-site testing found the TDS level to be 73 ppm. Samples of the said water bottles have been sent to a laboratory for analysis.
We would like to see all state food authorities conduct similar investigations across the country. Do you agree?
