A viral video clip has emerged on Facebook that appears to show a small rodent accidentally jumping into a deep fat fryer at popular restaurant chain Whataburger.
The clip, which has been shared over 82,000 times, was recorded at a location around 30 miles southwest of Austin, TX, and has caused consternation online.
Watch the unfortunate incident play out for yourself in the video below:Over the course of the video, stunned customers can be seen leaning over the counter of the restaurant, while the rodent can be seen running around out in the open across the kitchen's worktops. As a Whataburger manager offers to extend refunds to anyone in the restaurant, a woman shifts items on the stainless steel surfaces, attempting to catch the animal.
After a few seconds, in a desperate bid for freedom, the unfortunate rodent leaps off the side and straight into a vacant deep fat fryer. Stunned spectators peer into the oily depths, before withdrawing with baffled expressions on their faces. The animal is not seen again.
Understandably, the clip has caused quite a reaction on social media. Brushawn Lewis, who posted the original video, added the caption, “This s*** is crazy I'm at Whataburger in Bastrop,Tx. It's a damn rat just out in the open! But it did get deep fried! Smdh [sic]” and this sentiment was echoed in the comments.
One commenter wrote, “hahaha ridiculous I was dying, I just saw it! We just had Whataburger yesterday…[sic]” while another added, “I’ll never set foot in one of their places. That’s nasty.” Plenty of others took issue with the idea that the animal featured was a small rat rather than a small mouse, but almost everyone was universally horrified.
In a response to the controversial clip, Whataburger issued a direct apology on Facebook. The statement declared:
“Thank you for bringing this to our attention. At Whataburger, cleanliness and food safety are top priorities for us. In this instance, we closed the restaurant out of an abundance of caution and notified pest control. The entire restaurant has since been cleaned and sanitized. We addressed this situation as quickly as possible, reinforcing procedures with our Family Members.”
Whether or not the incident has any larger impact remains to be seen.
