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A Japanese diner has unlocked a new fear amongst udon lovers: discovering a live frog at the bottom of his noodles.

Taking to Twitter to share about his experience, the diner, who goes by the username Kaito, found the frog in the "shake udon" cup he purchased from the popular restaurant chain Marugame Seimen on May 21 during a business trip.

#シェイクうどん
自分が出張中に気に立っていたうどんを食べたら

何にカエル🐸

振った後に食べて最後の方まで気づかなかった

お店は3時間の営業停止の後にその日の夜から営業再開、今もサラダや同じ商品を販売中

食べる前には気をつけて pic.twitter.com/pjbxuLy9F6

— 魁斗 (@kaito09061) May 22, 2023

He said he didn't notice the frog was inside, even though he shook the cup before eating.

To support his claims, Kaito also attached a photo and a video which clearly captured a little green frog swimming inside his noodle broth.

Based on the photo and the video, it appeared that the Twitter user only came to the realisation that the amphibian had been inside his food all along when he was almost done with his noodles.

At the end of his tweet, Kaito warned his fellow diners to take extra care if they were thinking of patronising the outlet where he purchased the udon from, as it only suspended its operations for three hours after the incident and had since resumed business on the same evening.

The restaurant also continued selling salads and the shake udon product that he bought, Kaito added.

For those wondering, here's what the product looks like:

View this post on Instagram

 

A post shared by 丸亀製麺【公式】| ここのうどんは、生きている。 (@marugame_)

According to Marugame Seimen, customers can also choose to pair their udon with other ingredients, such as salad mix and seaweed.

Response from Marugame Seimen

After Kaito's tweet went viral, many commenters asked him to identify the exact location of the outlet where he bought the udon so that they could avoid it.

While the Twitter user had repeatedly declined to identify the restaurant, Marugame Seimen issued a statement in response to the incident on its official website on May 23, revealing that the unpleasant surprise took place in its Isahaya store located in Nagasaki.

In the statement, the restaurant chain apologised for the contamination incident and for causing "significant concern and inconvenience" to customers who brought the issue to its attention.

"Immediately upon receiving the report, we sought guidance from the relevant health authorities and determined that the contamination originated from the vegetable processing facility. As a result, we will conduct thorough on-site inspections and enhance quality control measures at all the factories of our suppliers involved in handling the vegetables."

At the end of the statement, the restaurant chain added that it had decided to suspend the sale of certain products containing salad mix, which come from the facility in question, from May 23 to May 25.

It also promised to make every effort to prevent such incidents from re-occurring in the future.

Sale of salad udon to be suspended until further notice

On May 25, Marugame Seimen released a follow-up statement, updating the public that the company had completed the on-site inspection of its facilities and made improvements in its inspection standards.

Nevertheless, it had decided to suspend the sale of two of its udon products containing salad mix until further notice so that it could prioritise the feelings of its valued customers.

The restaurant chain also vowed to continue enhancing its quality control efforts and carefully consider the resumption of sales of the aforementioned products.

Top images via kaito09061/Twitter & Google Maps