McDonald's coffee cup contained dead mouse, Fredericton man says
Ron Morais of Fredericton says he got more than he bargained for when he picked up a cup of coffee from a local McDonald’s restaurant on his way to work.
He was contendedly sipping his coffee that he got Monday from the Prospect Street location until he got to the bottom of the paper takeout cup.
“I always take the lid off to get my last sip of coffee. And when I took the lid off, there was a little bit of a surprise in my coffee cup. It was a dead mouse,” Morais said.
Morais said that wasn’t all that was in the cup. He said the mouse left “a few little, shall we say, presents” at the bottom of it.
Morais then showed a few of his co-workers what he had found.
“Unless I had been there and seen Ron drink all that coffee down to the last drop, I would have been, like, 'You're lying,’” said one colleague, Brad Patterson.
Jennifer LaHaye, another co-worker who saw the mouse, recalls Morais’s reaction.
“’Oh my God, there's a mouse in my coffee,’ is what he says. I turn around and look at him. The first time I looked, I actually looked and it's really, he's not joking,” LaHaye said.
“Like is he OK — and after that, I got green to the gills.”
Morais said the idea of drinking an entire cup of coffee with a mouse in it made him feel a little ill.
“I kind of had a little queasiness in my stomach,” he said.
Jason Patuano, the communications manager for the eastern region for McDonald’s Canada, issued a corporate statement that underscored how seriously the chain takes food safety.
“We take allegations involving cleanliness and sanitation very seriously,” the statement said.
“Upon learning of this situation, the local franchisee immediately began an investigation, including working closely with the local public health authority who conducted an inspection this [Tuesday] morning following receiving a complaint.”
McDonald's still investigating
A Department of Health restaurant inspection record on Tuesday said there was “no evidence of pests,” and all food items were sealed. The restaurant was not given any warnings in the report.
McDonald's Canada also said a pest control company found no evidence of any rodent issues in the building.
“We are continuing to investigate this isolated incident and have reached out to the customer to obtain the product sample,” the statement said.
“Until such time as we are able to collect all the necessary facts and laboratory results to conclude a full review, it would be inappropriate for us to comment further. Similarly, we would also caution against jumping to conclusions until more details are available.”
On Tuesday afternoon, Morais said he had not yet heard from McDonald's, but was looking forward to talking to the corporate officials.
“I’d like to know how the mouse got in the cup of coffee,” he said.
He also wants an assurance this won't happen to anyone else.
Morais is remaining philosophical about the incident.
“I mean, hey, you know. I'm here. And I'm in better shape than the mouse,” he said.
