A popular Chinese restaurant in Brisbane was shut down after a woman suffered severe throat trauma when she swallowed part of a stainless steel pot scrubber in her fried rice late last month.

Maxine Dosen was dining with her father at Bamboo Basket Chinese Restaurant, in the Portside precinct at Hamilton, when she ordered a small serving of fried rice.

“It all happened so quickly,” Ms Dosen said.

“I put this fried rice in my mouth and suddenly felt something sharp, like a prawn shell, go down my throat.

“I tried to bring it back up my throat and pulled this long, curly thing out of my mouth and put it down on a red napkin.”

She said stretched out on the table was a 4cm piece metal stretched. She also coughed up several metal shavings.

Having a history of digestive issues and bowel operations, Ms Dosen was raced to hospital as her doctors feared the metal may have entered her bowel.

Ms Dosen ended up with severe oesophageal scratching.

The injury developed into a serious infection, causing her to lose her voice.

A Brisbane City Council spokeswoman told The Courier-Mail an immediate on-site investigation was conducted at the restaurant.

“Council has issued the business with an immediate suspension of the restaurant’s food business licence and will continue to investigate the alleged stainless steel contaminant,” the spokeswoman said.

“The business will remain closed until council is satisfied the restaurant does not pose a safety risk to the public.”

A sign on the front door to the restaurant yesterday cited “unforeseen gas issues” as the reason for the closure and hoped to restore operations shortly.