FOB Sushi Bar temporarily closed its locations in Seattle and Bellevue, Wash., on Nov. 18 after a popular food critic’s TikTok video sparked concerns about food safety. The video showed what appeared to be a worm in raw fish being eaten at the restaurant. The closure was meant to allow the restaurant to review its food safety standards and ensure that all ingredients were safe for consumption.
After two weeks of being closed, FOB Sushi Bar is reopening its restaurant locations in Seattle and Bellevue on Tuesday morning. The restaurant stated that they have thoroughly reviewed their supply chain, food suppliers, food storage, and safety protocols to confirm that all ingredients are in compliance with food safety standards and up to code. They expressed excitement to resume serving customers delicious sushi once again.
In response to the concerns raised by the TikTok video, Public Health – Seattle and King County conducted an inspection at FOB Sushi on Nov. 27 and found no food code violations. The restaurant also provided all necessary paperwork related to parasite destruction in the fish served. FOB Sushi emphasized that its Belltown neighborhood location where the incident occurred continues to hold an “excellent” food safety rating from the health agency.
TikTok creator Keith Lee, who posted the original video, had a significant following on the platform. In his review, which has been viewed over 21 million times, viewers expressed concerns about the presence of a worm in the fish. FOB Sushi initially disputed the claim, stating that the movement seen in the video was due to natural fish elasticity, not worms. However, in light of the situation, the restaurant decided to voluntarily close its doors to investigate further.
Despite the closure and investigation, Lee did not fall ill from consuming the sushi at FOB Sushi Bar. Another TikTok user later posted a video claiming that his girlfriend had been hospitalized after eating at the restaurant following Lee’s visit. While Lee mentioned that he did not intend to harm any business, he emphasized the importance of accountability when it came to customer health and safety.
FOB Sushi expressed gratitude to the Seattle community for the support during this challenging time. The restaurant acknowledged the impact of the incident on its reputation and stated that customer health and safety were its top priorities. Moving forward, the establishment is committed to upholding food safety standards and ensuring the well-being of its patrons.
