The Coogee Bay Hotel is just across the road from where I once managed a Dominos pizza shop. I know the street and the hotel well. However, it seems the hotel is in the shit for well, serving shit. I am not one to mince words so if you are offended by the more plain language term for faecal matter the my apologies to you.It is not uncommon for people to say their food tastes like shit, but how many of you have ever really been served shit? It turns out that one such family claims they were. The story goes that they were enjoying a Grand Final day out in the now more family friendly Coogee Bay Hotel. It never used to be so family friendly, I guess time changes all things eventually.
Anyways, the family orders a bowl of ice cream and at the bottom of the bowl is what seems to be compacted chocolate. However, this was certain to be like no other chocolate this family had ever eaten.
The chocolate has been tested by the Federal Government's National Measurement Institute confirms that the matter "has an offensive odour and physical properties similar to human excreta ... and to contain fragments of a variety of plant matter typical of excreta".
Interestingly, the Hotel owner Chris Cheung and general manager Tony Williams have offered the family AUD 5000 without admitting liability, which is like saying that it probably is what you said but we will never admit it, the family has rejected the offer as it seems to think it is on a winner. There are claims that hte family is demanding a cool million or so.
The family has now retained the law firm Slater&Gordon which seems to suggest that this might get messier still.
There are pretty stiff penalties for knowingly breaching NSW food laws. These include prosecutions, fines, and jail time for individuals. Now that the allegations have been made and the compacted chocolate tested and found to be consistent with faecal matter, I am not sure that you can sweep this under the carpet so to speak even if the family and the hotel settle out of court.
It seems that the Primary Industries Minister, Ian Macdonald, is looking to get in on the action and has suggested that the family contact the NSW Food Authority so McDonald can start an investigation.
