A woman ordered brownies from Annabella Patisserie on Nov. 8 and got more than what she was craving — a shocking discovery of what she claimed to be a dead rat in the delivery bag.
The bakery subsequently posted a video that seemingly refuted the presence of the rat in the bag during a pre-delivery check.
'Horrible' experience
Facebook user Farah Oh Farah wrote about her "horrible" experience in a Facebook post on Nov. 8.
She had ordered brownies from Annabella Patisserie via GrabFood.
The delivery bag, which was apparently sealed with Velcro, was hung on her gate as per her request.
The moment she opened the door, a "strong, pungent" odour hit her.
She opened the bag, removed the box of brownies, and allegedly found a mysterious "something else" inside the box.
As it was dark outside, she took the box to her dining area which was more brightly lit.
That was when she was allegedly greeted with the sight of a dead rat inside the bag.
A squashed dead rat.
Calling the incident a "very serious food contamination and hygiene matter", she urged the Singapore Food Agency (SFA) to investigate the matter.
Only one side of bag visible to CCTV
In response to the situation, Annabella Patisserie took the initiative to share a closed-circuit television (CCTV) video recorded on Nov. 8 at 9:27pm.
In the video, the staff at the bakery's Nordcom II outlet along Gambas Crescent, Sembawang, could be seen swiftly checking the delivery bag before placing the box inside.
However, only one side of the bag was visible to the CCTV camera.
The bakery claimed that the staff adhered to the standard operating procedure while preparing the order.
However, it also assured the public that it was actively investigating the issue.
"We are taking this very seriously and we are working closely with our outlet partner delivery company, SFA, supplier and packing team to find the root cause," wrote the bakery.
Issuing a "sincere apology" to the customer for the "unpleasant experience", the bakery said that it would process a "full refund" for her order. They also extended to her an offer for their manager to visit her on Nov. 9.
Netizens were "shocked" and disgusted by the incident.
One Facebook user even expressed their decision to boycott Annabella Patisserie, by not ordering from the bakery for their children's upcoming birthday.
Mothership has reached out to Annabella Patisserie and the customer for comment.
Top image from Farah Oh Farah/Facebook.
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