Eyewitness News spoke exclusively with the customer, Hannah Rasbach, and the owner of the restaurant.
Mixed in with lettuce, sautéed beef and salmon is an extra, nasty helping of protein in Rasbach's meal.
"She asked if I thought it had come from the spring mix... obviously, I'm not sure where it came from," Rasbach said.
She told Eyewitness News that the person asking that question is an employee.
The 27-year-old ordered food to go, and was halfway through her meal when she says she spotted a dead rodent in her dish.
"When I tried to cut it, it didn't feel right, it felt like a fatty piece of meat or something, yeah sorry.... I took a better look and I saw the tail and eyes," Rasbach said.
Surveillance footage shows Rasbach inside Ongi on West 37th Street Monday afternoon.
The owner, Ray Park, gave us the footage, insisting the dead animal didn't come from his business.
"I was thinking, how can it be happening here, because we have a high standard to run every single day here," Park said.
Rasbach says now she can't imagine eating out.
"We had no idea how this animal died, it could have been rat poison, it could have been disease, any number of things," Rasbach said.
She rushed to the doctor, who was concerned the rodent could have defecated or urinated in the food. As a precaution, Rasbach was put on antibiotics.
Park says he has no idea where the rodent came from, and doesn't want to guess.
After the incident, Park says the staff went over the footage countless times. It shows employees making Rasbach's actual salad.
He stressed that the kitchen is clean, they have never found droppings and did keep the meal that Rasbach brought back, as evidence, he said.
"If I use my finger, it's this big including the tail. It's not small," Park said.
Rasbach filed a complaint with 311. The Health Department says it is investigating.
While Eyewitness News was inside the restaurant, an inspector did show up.
"I would like them to be shut down or investigated," Rasbach said.
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