Morgan Hill Restaurant Fined $120K For Serving Tilapia As Petrale Sole
MORGAN HILL (CBS SF) – A high-end Morgan Hill restaurant is under fire after being caught surreptitiously serving customers cheap fish while advertising and charging for a pricier one.
The Santa Clara County District Attorney's Office reached a settlement Wednesday in a case against AS Restaurant Consulting Group LLC, DBA Odeum Restaurant, and owner Salvatore Calisi.
Odeum, a Mediterranean infusion restaurant, advertised petrale sole on their menu but instead served their customers tilapia between October 2014 and March 2016.
Deputy District Attorney Jennifer Deng said the District Attorney's office received a complaint in early 2016 claiming the restaurant was serving the imposter fish and conducted a consumer investigation.
Deng said California health and safety codes strictly prohibit restaurants from misbranding or falsely advertising the food they serve.
Petrale sole is a type of flounder and a more expensive cut of fish than tilapia.
Prosecutors said the restaurant must pay $120,000 in civil penalties and restitution along with injunctive provisions prohibiting the restaurant from serving falsely advertised food.
Odeum is offering $30 gift certificates to all individuals who ordered petrale sole during the period in question. Consumers can find the claim forms in the Mercury News, Gilroy Dispatch or Morgan Hill Times newspapers in addition to the restaurant located at 17500 Depot St. .180.
Any leftover restitution money will be provided to the Santa Clara County Department of Environmental Health, Consumer Protection Division for training, education and enforcement.
Representatives from Odeum were unavailable for comment.
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