A dog-friendly restaurant in Charlotte, North Carolina has garnered attention from the local health department after a woman spotted a couple feeding their pooch off of their plates at the eatery.
Tikola McCree said she was at Foxcroft Wine Company in south Charlotte when she noticed two people feeding their dog off of the restaurant’s plates, utensils, and a cutting board. The dog was licking the plate, and McCree thought it was a health violation.
When she told employees she didn’t agree with the dog eating off the restaurant’s plates, she was reassured that they would be washed.
That, apparently, wasn’t enough. The woman decided to contact the county health department after spotting the pooch chowing down at the restaurant. She noted that the dog shouldn’t have been allowed to eat off the plate due to sanitary concerns.
“Let me put that out there — I am a dog lover and, I think as we are coming out of a pandemic, I don’t think that was the right course for the restaurant to allow,” she told Channel 9.
The eatery said that after it got the complaint, the health department visited to check out the situation. Officials found that Foxcroft Wine Company followed state guidelines and that no further action was needed. However, the health department did say that the “contamination of the utensils was a violation of the food code.”
The inspector also told employees at the restaurant that they “cannot allow dogs to eat off of multi-use plates or to lick utensils, even if those items are washed. If customers wish to provide food or water to their pets, single-service disposable items can be used and then thrown away.”
The health department did not fine Foxcroft Wine Company, but did educate the restaurant about health and safety procedures. After the incident, McCree took to Facebook to share her displeasure.
“Although I had intended to order a meal and additional beverages, I ate nothing there — ugh, just nasty!” she posted on Facebook. “This is why I try not to go to places with entitled people! We are trying to come out of a pandemic so I suppose dog saliva is fine now.”
Some commenters online agreed with her, while others didn’t see a problem with the pooch eating off the plate at the restaurant as long as it was cleaned afterward.
“Legally speaking, if sanitized properly they aren’t doing anything wrong,” one man replied. “But I understand what you are saying.”
H/T: WSOC TV
Featured Image: Tikola McCree/ Facebook
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