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Video: Giant Rat Scampers Through Baked Goods At Manhattan Dunkin' Donuts
By
John Del Signore
Published Apr 2, 2014
Modified Apr 2, 2014
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By
John Del Signore
Published Apr 2, 2014
Modified Apr 2, 2014
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[UPDATE BELOW] It's been a while since we had a good visceral reminder that every bite of food we welcome into the temple of our bodies has been christened by the tenderest of rat claws. Continuing in the proud tradition of the Rats Shock and Awe at the Taco Bell-KFC, Rats Frolicking in the Fairway Olive Bar and Rat Rodeo in the Vinny Vincenz Pizza Truck, we now have Rat "Goes to Town" and "Has Fun" in the croissants and assorted pastries in a Dunkin' Donuts in the Garment District. This addition to the canon is short, but sweet:
YouTube user "Pjayone" uploaded the video on April 1st, and claims the footage was captured at the Dunkin' Donuts at 37th Street and 8th Avenue. In an email, he elaborates, "At two-thirty [in the morning] every [day] the workers load the shelves with the mornings wares. Shortly thereafter like clockwork the rats come out and party."
Asked about rats at the establishment, an employee told us, "I haven't seen anything like that," and suggested we call back in the morning to speak with a manager. But for an added bonus, "Pjayone" has this outtake showing the rat in extreme closeup:
It's probably safe to assume this is all just a craaaazy April Fool's joke and there's no reason not to enjoy a delicious Eggs Benedict Sandwich with Spreadable Hollandaise from your local vermin-free Dunkin' Donuts purveyor.
Here's another outtake, courtesy "Pjayone," who adds in the comments of this post, "My phone ran out of power, or I would've filmed the outright nine deep rat assault which followed the action above." "Pjayone" also says, "The items in the video that are being besieged upon by the rats were to be sold for that mornings breakfast rush. The events you see in videos happened at two-thirty in the morning."
Dunkin Donuts Rat from Gothamist on Vimeo.
According to Health Department records, the alleged location, at 265 West 37th Street, boasts an A grade, despite being cited in November 2013 for "facility not vermin proof. Harborage or conditions conducive to attracting vermin to the premises and/or allowing vermin to exist." Eh, welcome to New York, right? On the other hand, you don't see this variety of fly infestation every day:
Filth flies or food/refuse/sewage-associated (FRSA) flies present in facility’s food and/or non-food areas. Filth flies include house flies, little house flies, blow flies, bottle flies and flesh flies. Food/refuse/sewage-associated flies include fruit flies, drain flies and Phorid flies.
If only Dunkin' Donuts could train their rats to eat the flies everything would be copacetic.
Update: Asked about the rat this morning, a man who identified himself as the location's manager but would not give his name says, "We don't have any issue like that."
Update 2: Dunkin' Donuts has issued this statement: "At Dunkin' Donuts, food safety is a top priority and nothing is more important to us than operating a clean and safe restaurant. We have stringent food safety and quality standards, and we take great pride in the food and beverages we serve to our guests every day.
"We take this matter very seriously. Immediately upon learning of the situation at the Dunkin' Donuts restaurant at 265 West 37th Street, a certified Operations Manager inspected the restaurant to ensure that all appropriate Dunkin’ Donuts food safety standards are being followed."
Update 3: Watch Dunkin' Donuts customers REACT to the video.
Tagged
dunkin' donuts
life
manhattan
midtown
rats
original
John Del Signore
Originally from the Albany area, John Del Signore has called NYC home since 1995. In addition to his thousands of meticulously-crafted bespoke blog posts for Gothamist, his writing has also been published in The Awl, Deadspin, The Nervous Breakdown, and performed at The Brick Theater in Brooklyn.
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