The iconic South Indian quick service restaurant (QSR) chain – Rameshwaram Café’s Hyderabad outlet was recently under fire with the Food Safety Department for violating multiple rules during a raid that took place on Friday. Issues such as finding expired or unlabelled food items like 100 kilos of urad dal worth Rs 16,000, 10 litres of Nandini curd and right litres of milk were seized. Along with this, officials also found 450 kilos of raw rice and 20 kilos of black-eyed peas labelled improperly in addition to 300 kilos of unlabelled jaggery.
Authorities also noted that food handlers worked without submitting their medical certificates and that the kitchen operated around uncovered dustbins. The raid, which took place in light of multiple eateries in Hyderabad found to be violating safety and hygiene standards, was followed by another inspection of the restaurant, Baahubali Kitchen, where unhygienic conditions and cockroaches were rampant. Alarming revelations of partially-cooked or uncooked food not being stored correctly were made, while authorities also noted that synthetic food colouring was thrown out.
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Telangana’s Food Safety Department also issued a statement on social media, where they mentioned that all the inspections conducted by the officials highlighted the same issues over and over. Notices were issued to both eateries following the safety and hygiene checks, as a way of the department’s efforts towards highlighting the importance of adhering to regulations. While the restaurant owners shared a response where they mentioned conducting an internal enquiry, the Madhapur café’s popularity comes from the QSR’s Bengaluru origins where the restaurant served up plates of ghee idlis and benne masala dosas.