The sushi bar in Seattle that was embroiled in a ‘bug controversy’ due to food critic influencer Keith Lee has finally closed.
FOB Sushi, a famous sushi bar in downtown Seattle, announced on Instagram early on the 18th, “We will temporarily close our Seattle and Bellevue locations until further notice.” In the end, the ‘Keith Lee Effect’ that attracts customers wherever it goes has had the opposite effect this time.
Keith Lee, the most famous influencer on the Internet with 16.5 million followers, recently visited Seattle and reviewed various local restaurants. While he received favorable reviews for a restaurant in Chinatown and an apple cider shop in Pike Place Market, FOB Sushi was embroiled in an unexpected controversy after his review.
The scene where Keith Lee showed sushi from FOB Sushi Bar in his video became the center of controversy. When other TikTok users zoomed in on the video, the sushi pieces appeared to be moving.
In response, FOB Sushi Bar released a statement, explaining, “The movement is simply a natural elasticity or a phenomenon that can occur when pressed with chopsticks, and does not indicate parasites or health issues.”
However, Keith Lee disagreed. He said, “I’ve eaten sushi thousands of times, and I’ve never seen it move like this before,” refuting the restaurant’s explanation. The controversy over the presence of bugs in the sushi spread online, and initially, the number of customers at the sushi bar doubled. However, the “bug controversy” spread to the sanitation issue at the sushi bar, which eventually led to the owner temporarily closing the business.
According to the Washington State Department of Health, FOB Sushi Bar received a “satisfactory” rating in a sanitation inspection in January. However, the King County Health Department is currently reviewing complaints received over the weekend and attempted to conduct an on-site inspection on the 18th, but the sushi bar was closed, so the inspection could not be conducted.
FOB Sushi Bar said in a statement that “the health and safety of our customers is our top priority,” adding that it “will thoroughly investigate this incident and take all necessary steps to prevent a recurrence.” It also offered its gratitude and apologies to the community and added that it “will continue to strive to provide the highest quality service possible.”
King County Public Health said it is “carefully reviewing all complaints received” and will “follow up to ensure FOB Sushi Bar is complying with applicable food safety regulations.”