Dandenong restaurant owner slammed for food code breaches, with rat poo found on and near food

A dirty Dandenong restaurant has been exposed after a rat infestation led to faeces being found in pantry areas and on dining utensils. See the photos:

Odaa Cafe and Restaurant owner Lola Jackson Taban pleaded guilty to multiple violations of the Food Act in Dandenong Court. Picture: supplied.

A rat infested restaurant has been busted breaking food safety rules after rodent faeces

was found on dining utensils.

Lola Jackson Taban — owner of Ethiopian restaurant Odaa Cafe and Restaurant — pleaded guilty in the Dandenong Magistrates’ Court on March 20 to multiple counts of violating the Food Act.

The Odaa Cafe and Restaurant was closed by Dandenong council health inspectors on May 10 last year, after a routine inspection uncovered the breaches.

Council inspectors uncovered the breaches, including a rat infestation. Picture: supplied.

The court heard an inspector went to the Foster Rd restaurant on May 9, where they noted 13 breaches to the Food Act, including seeing a rat in the kitchen area.

The kitchen cooktops, oven, food storage areas and cooking equipment were covered with “residue, food build up and grime”, as well as the inspector finding multiple holes in the walls at the front and back area of the restaurant.

Mouldy food pictured in the kitchen area of Odaa Cafe. Picture: supplied.

One hole was 30cm wide and had grime and hair build up on the edges.

The inspector also noted rodent faeces found on the floor, near food containers and on utensils.

The restaurant was ordered to close and inspectors attended a further three times in May 2024 before it was permitted to reopen.

A council officer returned on February 19 this year for a follow up inspection, where they again found multiple cleanliness breaches.

In court on Thursday, Taban said the restaurant had been left to her in the sickening condition when she took over the business in November 2023.

Officers conducted a follow up inspection of the restaurant, where further breaches were discovered. Picture: supplied.

“I’m in a really bad situation,” she said.

Magistrate Nunzio La Rosa said the “purpose of the code was to ensure the public are kept safe”.

“It’s not a case of ‘if I could I would’, it’s a case of you must,” he said.

Mr La Rosa said he could not avoid conviction due to the continuation of offending over the eight month period.

Taban was fined $9000 with conviction, alongside a fine with conviction of $17,500 for the Odaa Cafe and Restaurant entity.

She was also ordered to pay $8632 in costs to the council.