Smokey Mo’s BBQ Denies Rat Allegations, Disputes Lawsuit Claims

{
  "title": "Smokey Mo’s BBQ Denies Rat Allegations, Disputes Lawsuit Claims",
  "lead": "Smokey Mo’s BBQ refutes a former employee’s lawsuit alleging rodent activity at its Round Rock and Liberty Hill locations, citing pest control reports and records.",
  "body": "Smokey Mo’s BBQ is denying allegations of unsanitary practices made in a [lawsuit filed in November](https://example.com/lawsuit) by a former employee, calling the claims unsubstantiated.\n\nThe 55-page lawsuit, filed Nov. 10 in Williamson County by former employee John Wantz, alleges that Smokey Mo’s BBQ ignored months of warnings about rodent activity at multiple locations. Wantz, who worked in IT, also alleged the company retaliated against him when he escalated his concerns. The lawsuit primarily targets two Smokey Mo’s locations — one in Liberty Hill and another at 1601 S. Interstate 35 in Round Rock.\n\nA spokesperson for Smokey Mo’s told the American-Statesman that the claims are \"contradictory to documented facts, and motivated by personal grievances.\"\n\nSmokey Mo’s provided the Statesman with invoices from Ecolab, a pest control company. Reports from July, August, September and October state there was \"no rodent activity\" during the company’s monthly inspections, but they repeatedly flagged structural issues that could allow pests to enter and noted sanitation concerns — observations that mirror Williamson County health inspection reports from October and November.\n\nA July Ecolab report cited a gap beneath a rear door, while reports from August, September and October noted standing water on the kitchen floor and floor drains in need of cleaning.\n\nIn the most recent Ecolab report provided, dated Oct. 2, inspectors also noted a gap in a kitchen ceiling tile and recommended Smokey Mo’s seal it to \"prevent pest entry or harborage.\" That report came after a routine county health inspection on Sept. 8, during which an inspector similarly recommended sealing doorway gaps and ensuring the restaurant’s rear door remained closed during operating hours.\n\nHowever, a mid-October visit by Williamson County health officials documented findings beyond those noted in earlier inspections. According to that report, staff removed a rat from the restaurant’s lobby on Oct. 7. The inspector also found rodent droppings beneath the customer drink station, under a hand-washing sink near the manager’s office and on the floor near a back food-preparation station. No live rodents were observed, but the inspector advised staff to remove the droppings, clean and sanitize affected areas and continue sealing gaps.\n\nA follow-up inspection on Nov. 7 reported similar conditions. The inspector again observed \"gaps in rear doorways and small amount of rodent droppings\" near the oven area, as well as \"open snap traps in back preparation areas,\" according to the report.\n\nSmokey Mo’s said that between October and November, it stopped using Ecolab and began working with a pest control company contracted by the building owner. The company shared with the Statesman the text of an email from Prater Pest Solutions dated Nov. 13, which stated there were \"no new rodent catches in the false ceiling\" and \"no new activity or catches in the living space of the kitchen, food prep or front of the house areas.\"\n\n\"The sanitation was very good and I did not find any food debris or sanitation deficiencies,\" company owner Greg Prater wrote in the email.\n\nSmokey Mo's provided the Statesman with invoices from two work orders from Prater in November. Both are labeled as \"follow up inspections,\" with the Nov. 13 report echoing the text of Prater's email from the same day. The Nov. 29 report states the inspector \"prepositioned [sic] traps and cameras locations since there was no motion from cameras or catches.\"\n\nThe restaurant chain also disputed Wantz’s allegation that he witnessed an overnight extermination operation at the Round Rock location on Oct. 19. A spokesperson said the work was a ceiling replacement project, not an extermination. Wantz has claimed construction workers told him more than 150 rats were killed and about 30 live rodents escaped. Smokey Mo’s provided the Statesman with a statement from Leo Velarde, CEO of Silo Development Group, which said, in part, \"we wouldn’t even know how to exterminate one rat, much less 150,\" and added that workers found \"nothing out of the ordinary.\"\n\nSmokey Mo’s also rejected Wantz’s claim that he is owed mileage reimbursement. The company said Wantz agreed to a contract consulting role after he was terminated from his full-time position in August, and that the consulting contract \"explicitly excluded mileage reimbursement.\"\n\nIn the lawsuit, Wantz alleged his reassignment from a full-time role was retaliatory. The company disputes that claim, saying Wantz was terminated for \"lack of performance\" and later resigned from his consulting role.\n\nAccording to emails provided by Smokey Mo’s, Wantz and company president Craig Haley later disputed how much money Wantz was owed. Wantz claimed Haley promised reimbursement and alleged the denial was retaliation for raising concerns about rodents. Haley, in turn, wrote that Wantz’s accusations were inaccurate and said he believed Wantz was attempting to coerce the company into paying him.\n\n\"Once again, we are not negotiating this. You take the $5,000 or you will receive nothing today or in the future,\" Haley wrote in one email. A spokesperson for Smokey Mo’s said final payment for Wantz’s consulting work was wired on Nov. 5, \"with mileage denied per contract terms.\"\n\n\"Smokey Mo’s strictly abided by the terms of the contract with Wantz,\" the company said in a statement. \"Claims of retaliation are completely erroneous.\"\n\nIn response to a November report by the Statesman, the restaurant also clarified that while nearly 500 turkeys were prepared at the Round Rock location, that amount represented roughly 20% of the chain’s total of 2,200 Thanksgiving turkeys.\n\nA spokesperson for Smokey Mo’s said the company is weighing its legal options and is \"committed to defending itself,\" including potentially seeking recovery of damages related to the accusations."
}