A STALL owner at Larsian Barbeque Food Park in Cebu City may face closure following allegations of unsanitary food handling practices.
Located at Don Mariano Cui St. in Barangay Capitol Site, Larsian is a popular go-to for foodies and those who want to satisfy their cravings for grilled food.
It is open 24 hours daily and people usually converge there at night.
The famous food strip, though, has been marred by controversy after a video of a rat crawling atop the meat displayed on a food stall was uploaded and went viral on social media.
Roy Salubre, provincial treasurer and Larsian operations manager, said he ordered a team to investigate and deliver a show-cause order to the stall owner.
He pointed out that the stall owner committed serious violations against Larsian’s rules and regulations on food handling and sanitation.
“We will let the store owner explain. If not, we will recommend the closure of the store. We will really shut it down,” Salubre said.
Salubre reminded stall operators at Larsian to practice cleanliness at all times and to ensure that food served are thoroughly cooked.
As this developed, the Provincial Government is set to open for development the property where the Larsian sits through a Build, Transfer and Operate (BTO) scheme.
Gov. Gwendolyn Garcia on Friday, Jan. 31, 2020, said it will be patterned on the arrangement the Capitol had entered into with Filinvest Land Inc. (FLI) in relation to the FLI-managed Cyberzone Cebu in the Cebu IT Park.
If developed, the governor said the property’s value will increase.
“We are looking at again increasing the value of the property without disposing and without selling because the Build, Transfer, Operate scheme contemplates the improvements to be constructed on that property by the developer which upon completion, is immediately turned over to the Province’s possession or ownership,” Garcia said.
“Whatever facility built becomes the ownership of the Province. At the same time, they will be renting the property and will be sharing with the Province a certain percentage of their revenue,” she said.
The governor, though, said it would be up to the developer to decide whether to keep it as a food strip or not. / ANV / RTF