Raghavendra Rao, owner of The Rameshwaram Cafe.
Credit: DH Photo, X/@DealsDhamaka
Food safety authorities of Telangana found expired stocks of black gram (Urad dal) and some dairy items on the premises of the popular The Rameshwaram Café's Hyderabad outlet on May 23.
Co-owner of the cafe, Raghavendra Rao, uploaded a video apologising and accepting his mistake.
A lot of people, however found his body language 'intimidating', India Today reported.
In the video, Rao said, "Our vision is to play globally. We know we can't make a single mistake. I take it as a lesson. I have told my entire team to correct each and every step so that we don't go wrong anyway. This is how we learn. Again, I promise you that all our raw materials are of premium quality."
He further asserted the consumers that the ingredients used in the Cafe are of 'premium quality'.
"You can take any of your pulses and spices. It's all premium. The vegetables that we use are of premium quality. I request the food safety department to come and do inspections on what type of vegetables we use. These are the things they identified, which are valid and we are here to correct ourselves," he said.
People interpreted his video as a 'threat' and not an apology. They found his body language 'intimidating' and 'threatening'.
"His aggressive body language is not resonating with his words. It's like I will take care of those who said there are expired items, but please eat in my outlet," the publication quoted a user as saying.
Another user wrote, "Not going there after seeing this. He's threatening the customers" .
A user also said that Rao's words have 'lost value' and that he is 'desperate' for people to believe him rather than take action.
(with PTI inputs)