Home

Wendy’s Midland Gate shopping centre: Rat filmed lying on floor while staff work around it

Headshot of Sarah Steger
Sarah StegerThe West Australian
VideoA customer at Wendy's in Midland has filmed workers seeming to walk around a rat on the kitchen floor.

Disturbing footage of a rat sitting on the floor of a Perth fast food restaurant has gone viral, with the woman behind the “gross” video saying she was “shocked” by how quickly the clip spread on social media.

South Guildford woman Michelle Pellegrino was out getting lunch at Wendy’s at Midland Gate shopping centre with her sister Laura on Wednesday afternoon when the pair noticed a rodent sitting on the floor of the store’s kitchen.

“Here at Wendy’s they serve with rats,” Ms Pellegrino is heard saying in the video, which she says has been viewed more than 13,000 times.

“They know it’s there. They could at least kick it out the way, they’re just going around it.

Get in front of tomorrow's news for FREE

Journalism for the curious Australian across politics, business, culture and opinion.

READ NOW

“This is f...ing hilarious. Yummy. Want some rat with your Wendy’s?”

The 37-second-long video shows staff walking within centimetres of the rodent while it’s camped out on the kitchen floor.

The short clip does not show staff acknowledging the rat, or attempting to remove it.

The rat on the floor at Wendy’s in Midland Gate shopping centre.
Camera IconThe rat on the floor at Wendy’s in Midland Gate shopping centre. Credit: Michelle Pellegrino/Supplied

When contacted, however, Wendy’s said the “isolated incident was distressing for all and our staff were very frightened”.

A spokeswoman added that the franchise was taking the matter “very seriously”, and acknowledged restaurant staff “should have dealt with their fear and management of this issue differently”.

“Our stores have impeccable food safety records and procedures in place. Customer safety is our highest priority and we have taken appropriate incident management steps,” she said.

Ms Pellegrino, 37, described her video footage as “gross” and said it made her “feel like the whole Gate is unhygienic”.

“I was taken aback when I saw it. The girls working didn’t do anything after knowing about it,” Ms Pellegrino told The West Australian.

The rat on the floor at Wendy’s in Midland Gate shopping centre.
Camera IconThe rat on the floor at Wendy’s in Midland Gate shopping centre. Credit: Michelle Pellegrino/Supplied

“I posted it to Facebook and am shocked at how many views its has, over 13,000 so far.

“My brother is adamant its a bandicoot, which there are many of in this area. If that’s the case I’m not sure what the employees should have done.”

A Midland Gate spokeswoman said the centre team had become aware of “some concerns” and was in contact with the retailer involved.

“We have requested they take immediate action,” she said.

“It is our retailers’ responsibility to ensure their standards are in line with food safety regulations, and that their premises are compliant.

“We always worked closely with WA Health to ensure our retailers maintain strict standards of cleanliness and safety at our centre.

“Midland Gate has a comprehensive pest control management program in place to ensure Midland Gate is safe for all of our customers, retailers and the wider community.”

Get the latest news from thewest.com.au in your inbox.

Sign up for our emails