NewsWest 9
MIDLAND - NewsWest 9 has received dozens of questions coming in wanting to know if the rumors are true about the Grand Buffet in Midland.
Rumors have been flying around the Basin saying the Grand Buffet serves cats at their restaurant.
But for the owner, these rumors have become a frightening reality, one that's been going since the end of April.
"It's unbelievable," Grand Buffet Owner, Jun Hu, said. "In the very beginning, I thought it was just like a prank call."
But after more and more people came through asking about it, it became an even bigger problem.
Hu said he was still seeing rumors coming from customers on Wednesday.
"Her sister texted her saying that 'Hey, don't come in, because they have cats in the back and they're being investigated right now', and I told her it's not true," Hu said.
NewsWest 9 has heard so many rumors flying around ranging from Grand Buffet being shut down to finding dead cats in the dumpster, but the Midland Health Department is saying none of those are true.
In fact, NewsWest 9 received confirmation from the Manager of the Midland Health Department on Wednesday that a health inspection was held on May 5th.
Grand Buffet was given a clean bill and city officials dismissed these claims as nothing more than the rumor mill.
But that doesn't change the damage already done to the restaurant's business.
"We have seen it drop down a little bit, considerably," Hu said. "We feel really, really helpless. We feel like we're a victim of some nasty practical joke."
The owner believes the rumor was started by a chain of E-mails. He thinks he knows where it came from and said he's preparing for legal action.
In the meantime, he wants West Texans to know that the Grand Buffet is a perfectly safe place to come and eat.
