A Jokbal Restaurant in Bangbae-dong Used a Scrubber to Wash Feet... "They Said It Was Because of the Heat"

A man is wiping his feet with a scrubber while soaking his feet in a basin. Photo by Online Community Capture

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Choyoung] Recently, a video showing unsanitary radish washing practices at a jokbal (pig's trotters) restaurant has sparked public outrage. The man in the video was confirmed to be the manager in charge of the dining area at the restaurant. After the video spread, he quit the restaurant on the 25th.

According to a report by JoongAng Ilbo on the 29th, the man, Manager A, was responsible for the dining area at the restaurant. The incident occurred when kitchen staff were short-handed, and he helped prepare ingredients. The jokbal restaurant owner, Mr. Lee (66), explained, "It seems that day was the first time the manager prepared radish. Usually, I handle that task, but I happened to be out at the market that day."

As the video spread through social media (SNS) and online communities, causing controversy, Manager A explained, "I did it without much thought." When Mr. Lee asked, "How could you do this to me?" A replied, "It was because it was hot," to which Mr. Lee told him to quit.

Mr. Lee said, "When my wife told me about the video, I felt my heart drop," adding, "The kitchen staff are usually very clean, so at first, I couldn't understand the situation." Later, after reviewing the video, he realized the employee in the footage was the manager.

Another person appearing in the video, female employee B, said she could not say much to the higher-ranking Manager A. B said, "The manager seemed to be joking around, pretending to scrub, so I just said, 'What? That's dirty,'" and added, "After that, the dining area was very busy, so I asked him to come in and help."

The jokbal restaurant owner's wife said, "Business had been bad for a long time, and we couldn't even pay rent, but the store has been back to normal for about two years," and added, "During the COVID-19 pandemic, my husband, who is over 60, personally delivered orders and ran the business, so this incident is very upsetting."

According to the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety, in addition to the unsanitary radish washing, the restaurant was found to have violated food hygiene laws by using expired ingredients and violating frozen food storage standards. Regarding this, owner Mr. Lee said, "The problem was with the gochujang (red chili paste) that was bought to try adding webfoot octopus to the menu," and apologized, saying, "I am very sorry and have nothing to say about the discovery of the cold dish sauce."

Meanwhile, the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety has requested administrative action from the relevant authorities and decided to proceed with an investigation. Seocho District Office issued a prior notice of corrective action to the jokbal restaurant in Bangbae-dong on the 28th. The restaurant will face a one-month business suspension and a fine of 1 million won.