A dinner at the luxury JW Marriott hotel in Mumbai took an unpleasant turn after cardiologist Dr Ashok Seth spotted a baby cockroach crawling on his table at the hotel’s Romano restaurant.
Dr Seth shared a video of the incident on social media, showing the small insect moving around near the dinnerware. He described the unexpected visitor as “Roachie” and said the sighting ruined the group’s appetite, prompting them to leave the restaurant.
Doctor raises hygiene concerns
In his post, Dr Seth tagged Maharashtra Food and Drug Administration (FDA) chief Tukaram Munde and asked that the matter be looked into. He also made a light-hearted reference to the cockroach apparently preferring pizza over pasta.
The video quickly attracted attention online, with several users questioning how an insect could be present on a dining table at a high-end restaurant and calling for a hygiene inspection.
Hotel says it will investigate
Marriott Bonvoy Assist responded to Dr Seth’s post and apologised for the incident. The customer support account said the hotel took the matter seriously and would look into it. There was no immediate public response from the restaurant itself, according to reports.
The incident comes amid wider attention on food safety and hygiene standards at restaurants and hotels. In August, the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) issued notices to two five-star hotels in Delhi’s Aerocity following inspections that reportedly found food safety, hygiene, storage and licensing violations.
For the Mumbai doctor and his fellow diners, however, the discovery of the cockroach was enough to bring their dinner to an early end.