This is the stomach-churning moment a giant rat was spotted scurrying around a new restaurant – after climbing in through the letterbox.

Footage shows a rodent leaping onto chairs at Pepe's Piri Piri in Stephenson Place, Chesterfield, Derbys.

Shelby Johnson, 21, was walking with her two-year-old son Kobe-Jax when the youngster starting pointing and shouting: "Rats! rats!" "

Pictures shows one rat crouching on the back of a chair and staring at Kobe through the window of the eaterie.

Shelby said: "We wouldn't have noticed if it wasn't for Kobe shouting ‘rats rats'."



"Next minute there are three rats running around the floor."



"I'm sorry but that's absolutely disgusting considering that's it's a dining area where people eat and it's relatively new to Chesterfield."



The incident took place on August 19, and was promptly reported to Environmental Health and Chesterfield Borough Council.



The venue, which opened last month, was temporarily closed to allow for pest control visits and deep cleaning to be carried out.

The restaurant, which has since opened, confirmed a rat had climbed into the restaurant through the letterbox

A spokesperson for Pepe's Piri Piri said: "We were aware of an isolated incident involving the sighting of a rat within our Pepe's store premises. "

"Pepe's Head office closed the store to carry out an immediate and thorough investigation by our internal team, a specialist pest control company and the local authority. "

"It was confirmed that the rodent gained entry through the front door letterbox."



"No other traces of infestation or access points were found inside the store. "

"The safety and hygiene of our stores remain our highest priority. "

"As a precaution, we took swift and comprehensive measures, including deep cleaning the entire store with an external commercial cleaning company, and reinforcing our entry points, to ensure this does not happen again. "

"The store then had three pest control visits which confirmed no pest activity in the store, before the store reopened. "

"We appreciate the attention to this matter and remain committed to maintaining the highest standards for our customers and staff."