A restaurant in La Trinidad, Benguet that is already facing charges for allegedly serving dog meat may soon face another criminal complaint after government inspectors suspected they were served dog meat during a recent visit.

According to a police blotter from the La Trinidad Municipal Police Station, personnel from the Municipal Agriculture Office (MAO) and the National Meat Inspection Service (NMIS) visited the restaurant in Barangay Puguis for lunch on 6 July.

The group said they were served five bowls of soup, with a staff member allegedly telling them that three of the brown bowls contained dog meat while the others contained beef.

The inspectors also ordered several side dishes, locally known as pulutan, which they said closely resembled dog meat.

Suspicious of the food, they consumed only the portions identified as beef and asked to take the remaining meat for laboratory examination. After informing the restaurant of their intention, the staff allegedly refused to allow them to take the leftovers.

The group sought assistance from a lawyer, who negotiated with the restaurant management. The establishment later allowed the meat to be packed and sealed in the presence of its staff.

The sample was placed in a transparent container, marked with the date and location, and signed by the lawyer before being brought to the police station for documentation.

The specimen has since been submitted to an NMIS laboratory for DNA analysis. Authorities said the test results will determine whether additional criminal charges will be filed against the restaurant owner.

The same lawyer previously filed criminal complaints against the establishment on 3 June after an independent investigation allegedly found it was serving dog meat under a different menu name.

A government molecular biology report later confirmed the presence of dog DNA in samples collected during that investigation, resulting in complaints for alleged violations of the Meat Inspection Code, Anti-Rabies Act, Consumer Act, and Food Safety Act.