NYC Restaurant Where Rats Hammed It Up For Camera Will Stay Closed For Good

Friday, May 4th 2007, 4:01 pm

By: News On 6

NEW YORK (AP) _ A KFC/Taco Bell restaurant that was shut down after dozens of rats were videotaped crawling around its floor will stay closed for good, the chain's owner has told investors.

City health inspectors ordered the Manhattan fast-food eatery closed in February after the video, showing the rodents skittering across the floor, climbing on tables and roaming countertops in the early morning, was circulated worldwide on the Internet.

While announcing its first-quarter earnings Tuesday, chain owner Yum! Brands Inc. said the now-infamous location would not reopen. The Louisville, Ky.-based company, which operates KFC, Taco Bell and Pizza Hut, also said it would review recommendations later this month from a pest control expert who is examining the franchise's operations nationwide.

``We are determined to prevent this incident from happening again,'' the company said.

The company had leased the establishment. Ten more of the chain's restaurants in New York City that were closed after the videotape circulated have since reopened.