Food hygiene: Why Standard Tandoori Restaurant scored 0/5

Standard Tandoori Restaurant was told "urgent improvement" was needed after 22 areas of concern were highlighted during a February 10 assessment.

However, Three Rivers District Council said there has since been "good engagement" and revisits have confirmed "progress is being made".

After the initial assessment, cleanliness and conditions of facilities and management of food safety needed “major improvement”, while the hygienic food handling needed “improvement”.

A report seen by the Observer reveals that fresh meats and prepared potatoes were at risk of contamination as they were left outside and there was a “significant amount” of time at room temperature.

Inspectors added that many fridge items were unlabelled or did not have use by dates.

Standard Tandoori Restaurant. Credit: Street View

The head chef, other chefs and the kitchen porter were instructed to have training repeated due to a “poor understanding of food hygiene and safety”.

According to the report, the premises and equipment were also “very dirty” and required “thorough cleaning” at the time of the visit and there were early indications of pests.

Likewise, it was said many utensils were “dirty, covered in carbonaceous deposits, greasy and sticky to the touch”.

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A Standard Tandoori Restaurant representative said that many steps have been taken including formal staff training, improved cleaning and disinfection processes, and robust due diligence.

They added: “Since the initial visit we have worked with our third party to ensure that we can work to the highest levels of food hygiene possible.

“We are looking forward to welcoming back the inspector to carry out a full re-inspection and re-rating in the near future.”

A request for an unannounced reassessment has been submitted.

Before the latest visit, the restaurant was rated ‘good’ with a 4/5 rating.