Highlights
- Returning travellers to Melbourne complain about the quality of food in hotel quarantine
- Travellers claim they are being served "expired and undercooked" food
- "If any guest has concerns, they can bring it to our attention," says Victoria Government spokesperson
A Sydney couple in mandatory hotel isolation owing to coronavirus restrictions claims the meals they have been served over the past four days in quarantine are “pretty substandard” and they claim that they have been sent “expired food” on at least one occasion.
John Haywood and his wife Francine are currently at the Travelodge in Southbank, with 270 other return travellers from India.
“The quality of food being served is pretty substandard, some items have overdue expiry dates, for instance, the aioli that went out to many rooms, meals are often wrongly labelled, rotten and even smelly, which at a hotel we don’t expect,” says Mr Haywood.
The hotel, however, denies the food was out of date and has explained that the label affixed by the hotel staff contained an error.
“As part of group meal preparation, we portion out bulk prepared food items into smaller portions. In this instance, the actual product was not past its best buy date," said a spokesperson for the Travelodge Hotels.
We print and affix “consume by dates” onto the containers on a daily basis as part of our food control program and unfortunately - through basic human error - the incorrect date was printed and affixed. The food in question was not out of date as all food is prepared daily
John and Francine Haywood are currently in quarantine at a hotel in Melbourne. Source: Supplied
“The services responsible for sending out meals to the hotel must know that most of the travellers are Indians and they prefer to eat a certain kind of food.
“There has been no cultural context to the food being served which has led to misunderstandings among the group,” adds Mr Haywood.
'Grateful, but please don't serve us food that can make us sick'
Sam*, another traveller who doesn’t wish to disclose her real name, says she understands that food on offer does not have to meet everyone’s personal taste or preferences.
“I am grateful to the government that they are providing us with meals,” says Sam.
However, she says that they should not be served food that’s going to make them sick.
“Please don’t serve us food that’s only going to make us sick," says Sam.
She claims that they have been served condiments that were significantly out of date, meals that are expiring on the day it's being served- and claims that "when the meals get to us it’s partially defrosted which indicates that’s its been sitting out or in the fridge for far too long."
She adds that while the hotel staff had been receptive to their feedback, no action has been taken so far to address their complaints.
Picture of meals with April 14 'expiry date' that a traveller claims was served to him on April 15. Source: Supplied
“We have tried complaining. I don’t feel like anyone is listening to us. The part of the problem with food hygiene is not been taking seriously," adds Sam.
Responding to SBS Punjabi's query earlier today, the hotel claims it has apologised to its guests and has addressed all concerns that were directed to them.
“We currently have around 270 Indian guests in-house at Travelodge Southbank who let us know that the spice levels in the western menu were not to their taste. We have listened and, as of Friday, our catering company will produce an Indian menu especially for this group. This has been communicated via WhatsApp and was gratefully received,” said the spokesperson for Travelodge Hotels.
Pawan Vashisht, another traveller currently cooped-up in a room in the same hotel says the food quality is “horrible” to an extent that he prefers to order from the hotel's kitchen rather than eating what's been supplied by the catering company that has been hired by the hotel to supply food.
Pawan claims "The food being served is undercooked and sometimes tastes stale, so much so that I prefer to spend money on my credit card to order food from the hotel kitchen over what is being offered as part of quarantine."
Mr Vashisht says he hopes the authorities would swing into action and address their concerns.
Traveller shows picture of Aioli that was served along with the meal. Source: Supplied
“I just want them to address our concerns and improve the quality of food being served so that we can spend the rest of the days in ease,” he adds.
The hotel claims it is committed to ensuring their guests have the best possible stay they can under "incredibly difficult circumstances."
"It is important to note that the hotel team is required to operate within strict official mandated guidelines, therefore at times the hotel team are unable to assist or provide answers, however, they do advise the relevant authorities and provide contact details of those who can," said the hotel spokesperson.
According to the Victoria government’s quarantine rules, international travellers can receive care packages from home twice during the mandatory 14-day isolation and can also order groceries from Woolworths through a priority ordering arrangement. Some hotels have also made it possible for additional food from the hotel kitchen to be ordered at guests’ expense.
A snapshot of fact sheet given to all returning travellers in hotel quarantine. Source: Supplied
SBS understands that travellers were earlier not allowed to use external food delivery services like Uber Eats or Deliveroo, as per the state government's quarantine rules.
But the hotel claims that the government has now "relaxed its rules" around deliveries.
'It's not all bad'
Businessman Paul Chan is a return traveller who is currently in quarantine at Travelodge Hotel in Melbourne. Source: Supplied
But businessman Paul Chan who owns two restaurants in Queensland says "It’s not all bad."
He claims there seems to be a “disconnect between the government and the hotel that is leading to some misunderstanding in the group.”
“While I am fully supportive of the group, as a restaurateur myself, I feel there is a communication breakdown between the government and the hotel - they are not here to offend people.
“I feel the hotel did not get the brief about who their guests were, therefore the hiccups,” says Mr Chan.
He says he is hopeful that things will improve in the days to come.
"We have been told that the catering company has now been briefed so hopefully, things should improve in days to come," he adds.
In a statement to SBS Punjabi, a spokesperson for the Victoria Government said returning travellers arriving in Melbourne are asked to provide information about any allergies and dietary needs.
Picture of a meal provided to a traveller in quarantine at a hotel in Melbourne. Source: Supplied
“This information is used to provide three meals a day to each traveller at their hotel. If any guest has concerns, they can bring it to our attention via the dedicated support service which operates seven days a week,” said the government spokesperson.
Click on the player above to listen to the interviews in Punjabi.
Sam* is not her original name.
Coronavirus symptoms can range from mild illness to pneumonia, according to the Federal Government's website. Symptoms can include a fever, coughing, sore throat, fatigue and shortness of breath.
If you develop symptoms within 14 days of returning from overseas, you should call to seek medical attention.
If you don’t have symptoms but you have been in contact with a confirmed COVID-19 case, you should also call to seek medical attention.
If you believe you may need to get tested, call your doctor, don’t visit. Or contact the national Coronavirus Health Information Hotline on 1800 020 080.
If you are struggling to breathe or experiencing a medical emergency, call 000.
