A-SALT ON THE SENSES

Big fine for eatery after diner eats caustic soda

A POPULAR Gold Coast restaurant has been slugged $40,000 in fines and legal costs after pleading guilty to putting caustic soda in the salt shaker.

A diner went to the restaurant for lunch with his family and requested salt after the shaker on the table was empty. After a new container was brought out by a waitress, the man tipped the “fresh salt” on to his meal.

Within minutes he was suffering acid burns and bleeding to the mouth.

A POPULAR Gold Coast Asian restaurant has copped a $25,000 fine after a diner sustained acid burns in their mouth when toxic chemicals were mistakenly put into a salt shaker.

Xiaoxue, aka “Sophia”, Sun yesterday pleaded guilty in the Southport Magistrates Court to last year selling unsafe food at her eatery, Top One Chinese Restaurant, at Australia Fair, Southport.

The company Sun is execu- tive officer of, Huaxia International Pty Ltd, was also found guilty of failing to ensure a company complied with the food safety laws.

The Gold Coast Public Health Unit brought the charges against Sun after a customer was treated by ambulance officers at the restaurant on September 18, 2016, when he began bleeding at the mouth after putting salt on his meal.

Court documents show the man had gone to the restaurant for lunch with his family and requested salt after he noticed the shaker on the table was empty.

After a new container was brought by a waitress, the diner put it on his meal and experienced severe pain.

He was also treated for blistering to his lips but was not taken to hospital.

The man described the pain as “really bad” and his daughter said it smelt like there was something “toxic” on his meal, according to documents tendered to the court.

Environmental Health officers who attended the restaurant later found a number of “unlabelled containers” of white substances, including a 10kg tub of caustic soda, in a cupboard at the restaurant, documents say.

After testing the shaker, given to them by the customer’s daughter, officers found it contained sodium hydroxide, which is commonly known as caustic soda. The product is often used as a heavy-duty industrial cleaner.

For selling unsafe food, the company was fined $20,000 and ordered to pay court costs of $515.90 and $15,000 in legal costs.

Sun, who represented herself in court, was fined a further $5000 for failing to ensure the company that owns Top One Chinese complied with food safety legislation.

Terry Moore, from the Gold Coast Public Health Unit, said the court action sent a “clear message to the restaurant industry that they must remain vigilant when poisons were in use”.

“Poisons such as a caustic soda should be appropriately labelled and stored safely,” Mr Moore said.

“Staff must also be trained in the safe use and storage of poisons.

“We took this matter to court because Gold Coasters have a right to enjoy a safe meal out.”

Sun was unavailable for comment.