The inside of a Chinese restaurant has been gutted after diners were left shocked by a rat falling from the ceiling.

The incident happened at The Water Palace, Dover Street, Sittingbourne.

Louissa Downham and her partner David West were enjoying a meal when the rodent landed just inches from where they were sitting.

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She said: "We had sat down and started eating and I heard weird noises coming from above that I thought might be a pigeon.

"My partner heard squeaks and thought it was a mouse.

"Suddenly this massive black rat fell down about six inches away from his lap and ran off.

VIDEO: The rat fell from the ceiling at The Water Palace

"We started screaming and ran away, it was such a massive shock and my partner is scared of animals too.

"Even the bar staff saw it and screamed."

The 22-year-old added: "We’ve been there a few times for Valentine’s Day and it’s always been fine."

The incident on Saturday has been widely shared on social media.

In a statement released on Monday, the restaurant said: “We are extremely sorry some of our patrons were affected by an unfortunate event that was beyond our control.

“Renovation works are being carried out in the building above which has obviously caused the rat to become frightened and scurry down.

“This was a one off. We have been open since 2005 and never had such an issue or incident, but as an extra precaution, we will be shutting the restaurant until all renovations upstairs are completed.”

Owner Aiqin Chen added: "It's very hard for me.

"We shut straight away and pulled the ceiling down and I am very sad about this.

"We will re-open in a few weeks time when it's all done."

As well as waiting for those works to be complete, the restaurant area has been gutted by staff ahead of a revamp.

Swale council is investigating the incident.

A spokesman said: “We have received two complaints about an incident at the premises over the weekend, and will visit the premises as part of our investigation.”