Restaurant Falsely Accused of Serving Cat Meat

As first reported by the Philly Metro, Danny's Wok in Southwest Philly has been dealing with harassment online and over the phone due to some bizarre and unfounded allegations that the restaurant was busted for slaughtering and serving cat to its patrons.

The story apparently stems from an article the Metro ran early in the month, about a piece of legislation that sought to tighten up regulations on consuming domestic animals. (The practice is already banned in restaurants, but it remains legal to humanely slaughter and consume such animals in homes.) That article cited an SPCA officer named George Bengal, who recalled an 11-year-old case in which an unnamed West Philly restaurant was shut down after it was found to be slaughtering cats in the basement to serve to customers.

What remains unclear is how Danny's Wok ever got attached to the story. A Facebook comment accusing the restaurant was posted to its page on December 9, one week after the initial Metro story, by a user named Buffy Mason. (Mason has not replied to a request for comment by Eater; Metro notes that they also attempted to contact her without success). Several similar comments came after, eventually met with comments in support of the restaurant. Twitter shows similar gossip, starting at least by December 11. Bengal himself has denied that Danny's is the restaurant in question.

In one of her Facebook comments, Mason claims to have read the link to Danny's in another article, which she has failed to produce. Owner Danny Cheng told the Metro he has gotten as many as a hundred calls per day thanks to the ugly rumors, despite the fact that the 11-year-old tale was said to concern a restaurant that was subsequently closed.

· Philadelphia Asian Restaurant Falsely Accused of Selling Cat and Dog Meat [Metro]
· Eating Dogs and Cats Would Be Banned If Bill Passes State Senate [Metro]