This is part of an article from The Independant yesterday. It shows how council inspectors target all food shops and restaurants regardless of their status. Read the full article here.
Celebrity chef disasters
Heston Blumenthal was forced to temporarily close Dinner, his exclusive Knightsbridge eaterie, after two diners and three staff went down with the norovirus winter vomiting bug, last year. Environmental health officers told staff at the double Michelin starred restaurant to wash their hands more often. The same bug hit the chef’s Fat Duck in Bray, Berkshire in 2009.
Jamie Oliver’s exclusive butcher’s shop Barbecoa, near St Paul’s Cathedral, in London, had to temporarily close last year after inspectors found serious hygiene problems including mouse droppings, mould on carcasses and out-of-date wagyu beef. Barbecoa shut for 24 hours after public health officers scored it one out of five.
Two-star Michelin chef Marcus Wareing failed a routine hygiene inspection at his restaurant at London’s five-star Berkeley Hotel in 2013. Inspectors said pest control experts should be called in to control a “fly infestation”, warned of E.coli risks and told Wareing to buy a new vacuum-packing machine.
The Marco Pierre White Steakhouse, the chef’s flagship Birmingham restaurant, was given a “bad” rating for food hygiene and safety in 2014.
