The worm in the soy sauce

People have an unfair aversion to worms. Sure, some are parasites and we should be concerned but many are relatively innocuous...like the one I found on my plate while enjoying a buffet dinner at Marina Bay Sands in Singapore.

I think the worm, which was still very much alive and trashing about in a pool of soy sauce, had hitchhiked on some freshly shucked oysters.  I'm not sure what species it was but I could tell it was a polychaete (a group of marine worms), based on the bristles (see above example from the web).

I told my hosts and they were absolutely mortified. I tried to assure them that it was fine and I'll just flick it aside but they insisted on calling over the waiter who promptly took my plate away (along with the oysters and sashimi, which I was still very happy to eat).

A very worried manager then emerged. My hosts were explaining to the manager how gross it was to see a live worm and that they were embarrassed because I had come all the way from Australia. The manager was apologetic and offered me a drink on the house. I told him it was not a big deal and that the offer of the drink, whilst very kind, was unnecessary. In hindsight, I should have just kept my mouth shut – like the time I found a parasitic isopod in the gill of my grilled flounder at a seafood restaurant in Melbourne.