By Angela Jacob
For The Diamondback
The Applebee’s on Route 1 in College Park had to temporarily close its doors July 20 because of a rodent health code violation, according to a Washington Post notice.
“[Applebee’s] closed Wednesday because of a mouse infestation. Reopened the next day,” the notice stated. The same article cited seven other establishments in the Washington metro area that were closed that day for code violations.
“Infestation” could mean several mice, but the branch’s general manager Anthony Santasia indicated the problem wasn’t nearly as big as the word insinuated.
“We had one mouse that ran in the back and came through the back door,” he said. “The health department woman was in there, and when she saw it, she immediately shut us down because there was a rodent in the building.”
Patrice Louderback, a Prince George’s Health Department communications coordinator, said the restaurant was given a “Notice of Violation” on July 8 after evidence of rodents was discovered in the restaurant. During the follow-up investigation, more evidence of mice was discovered, including gnawed-on food. Applebee’s was forced to shut down to handle the infestation.
“We have a bunch of traps in the restaurant and we actually did catch it the next day so we got rid of it,” Santasia said. He noted that the restaurant wasn’t mandated to release information about this to the public.
Louderback said nothing like this has happened in the past at this Applebee’s location. She outlined the dangers of having mice present in an establishment.
“The presence of mice can result in droppings on tables, counters and equipment,” she said. “This can cause the spread of diseases and symptoms, such as salmonella and lung infections that can sometimes be fatal. A person can also get muscle aches, rashes and abdominal pain.”
Louderback said the health department recommends that restaurant owners should do the following to prevent rodents: ensure their entire facility — including canned goods — is kept clean and sanitary, discard all unused equipment, and routinely have pest control companies check the area.
Thomas Sullivan, a senior government and politics and Spanish major, said he goes to Applebee’s about twice a month and thinks the restaurant is “pretty clean.”
Having a mouse in the restaurant is off-putting, Sullivan said, “but it’s not going to deter me from going to Applebee’s.”
Sullivan said he doesn’t expect anything super fancy and goes to Applebee’s to spend time with friends and to watch Thursday night karaoke.
In terms of Applebee’s not having to release information on the incident, Sullivan said he didn’t think there should be any major red flags.
“It should be relatively low-key because we don’t know how the mouse got in there,” he said. “It could be an isolated incident. … Who knows really where the mouse came from?”
Santasia said the staff has taken steps to ensure that something like this will never happen again.
“The restaurant is cleaner than it has ever been before,” he said.
