Dead lizard discovered in pan mee, customer baffled by staff’s deflective response

If pan mee is your all-time favourite and you’ve got a sensitive stomach… you might want to skip this one. On 6 Apr 2025, a woman in Tawau, Sabah, experienced a culinary horror story — she found a dead lizard in her bowl of pan mee.

The unsettling incident was shared in a Facebook group named “沙巴大声公”, complete with photos and a detailed recounting. According to the post, the customer was having breakfast with her family at the restaurant when she noticed something peculiar: the head of a lizard emerging from her soup pan mee.

Understandably horrified, she rushed to the toilet to vomit. After composing herself, she informed the staff — but rather than immediate concern, she was met with a baffling response. The staff casually suggested that the lizard may have simply fallen in when she wasn’t looking.

She was stunned. The creature’s soft, clearly boiled body told a very different story — it had been cooked right along with the soup, and served directly to her table. 

When she asked to speak with the owner, she was told that the boss was hospitalised at the moment. Still reeling, she then asked whether she was still expected to pay for the meal. 

The reply? “Kalau mahu bayar pun boleh, kalau tak mahu pun tak apa,” which translates to, “If you want to pay, you can. If you don’t want to, that’s okay.” 

Unimpressed and still queasy, she warned that she would report the incident to the Ministry of Health. The staff responded with a nonchalant, “Pergi lah,” or, “Go ahead.”

True to her word, she filed a report with the authorities. While the restaurant’s name hasn’t been officially revealed, it seems the locals already know exactly where it happened. There have been no further updates from the customer, as far as we know of.

So… what would you do if you found a reptile enjoying a swim in your meal?

This restaurant is serving kitchen sponges & dirty sink water — and people are actually eating it