Rats R Us

Everyone knows rats are living among us - in the parks, the subway system, buildings and restaurants. But we don't expect to see hordes of them scurrying in plain view in a restaurant as recently witnessed at the Taco Bell-KFC in Greenwich Village. This was a major news item for all the local networks and papers on February 23, 2007. Click here for the Gothamist coverage - they had numerous articles spanning several days. And if you have the stomach for it, here's the video clip of the rats in action - this was run over and over on the day the news broke. Since this episode there have been many similar stories regarding other restaurants. I decided to stroll by the location last night and see the status. The place was completely closed of course. The only things of interest were the two Department of Health notices on the windows with an accumulation of comments written on them (click on the photo or this link to view a larger image for better reading). New Yorkers are extremely tolerant and adaptable. Very little really shocks us or for very long - even then, we bounce back rather quickly. And we have a good sense of humor, as evidenced by the comments on the notices. However, many doubt that Taco Bell will reopen at this location - how many would want to eat here? Tolerant or not, even New Yorkers can draw the line ...