Some 35 establishments across Wales have received the worst possible food hygiene rating. The latest list of places with a zero score include popular cafes and a football team's clubhouse.
The Food Standards Agency classes businesses with zero stars out of five as needing "urgent improvement". Council inspectors visit premises and consider how food is handled, stored and prepared. They also look at how clean facilities are and how food safety is managed. If an inspector finds there is an imminent risk to public health they have the power to stop part of the operation or close it down entirely until the issues are addressed. They can also set a deadline for improvements.
The information below is publicly available on the Food Standards Agency website. The ratings appear as they do on that site at the time of publication. WalesOnline has approached all the listed businesses for comment. If yours would like to add a response to this article, please email conor.gogarty@walesonline.co.uk or newsdesk@walesonline.co.uk
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Black and White Cafe
Address: 1A North Clive Street, Grangetown, Cardiff
Business type: Cafe
Date of inspection: January 31, 2023
Hygienic food handling: Major improvement necessary
Cleanliness and condition of facilities and building: Major improvement necessary
Management of food safety: Urgent improvement necessary
What the business says:
George Formosa, owner of the Black and White Cafe, which first opened in 1971, said: "We were short of staff. The 'safer food, better business' book wasn't filled in. These kinds of places are difficult to keep running... All the energy costs and food prices have gone up. Not a lot of places are going to survive. Saying that, you should never cut corners, which I don't."
Mr Formosa said the inspector's concerns included temperatures not being logged, the state of the dishwasher, and the cloth that was being used to hold hot plates. "We have sorted that out," he added. "We have a brand new dishwasher."
Asked about the impact of the rating, he said: "It hasn't stopped people coming in. We have been here donkey's years. We always provide good value and quality."
Morgans Family Butchers
Address: 103 The Struet, Brecon, Powys
Business type: Retailer
Date of inspection: November 9, 2022
Hygienic food handling: Urgent improvement necessary
Cleanliness and condition of facilities and building: Major improvement necessary
Management of food safety: Major improvement necessary
What the business says:
Owner Steve Morgans, who is also a Brecon town councillor for St David ward, claimed the hygiene inspector was unhappy with blood on the walls and floor of the butcher's back room. He said: "The problem you've got is these people don't necessarily work in food premises. They think the back of a butcher's is the same as a kitchen. They say, 'There's blood on the floor.' Well there's f***ing going to be, we're working. They don't see it at the end of the day when it's all cleaned up.
"They asked me what the five pieces of meat in the tray outside were. I said, 'That's rat poison, it's not meat at all.' And they said, 'Oh right.' I think the problem you've got is these people don't have our knowledge of meat. What they have knowledge of is science. There's no grey area with them, just black or white."
Mr Morgans said the shop was penalised for vacuum-packing beef for longer than 12 days. "We were doing it for 21 days," he said. "'We then sent our beef off for scientific analysis, and it turns out our beef will actually keep for up to 35 days, although we don't keep it that long. I've given [environmental health] the evidence and they cannot stop me keeping the meat longer than 12 days. The proof is in the science.
"It's all been resolved. We were reinspected last week. I'm not sure what we've been given, but I we know we're not a nought anymore. I think it's a four... In Wales there seems to be a very socialist attitude of 'name and shame'. What they need to realise is it's our taxes that pay their wages, because they are public servants, as I am too. I serve the public in my shop... I started here when I was 17. Now I'm 55. How many people have we poisoned in the last 38 years? It's zero."
Cafe Brava
Address: 71 Pontcanna Street, Pontcanna, Cardiff
Business type: Cafe
Date of inspection: January 24, 2023
Hygienic food handling: Major improvement necessary
Cleanliness and condition of facilities and building: Major improvement necessary
Management of food safety: Major improvement necessary
What the business says:
Andrew Minns, who has run Brava since 2000, said it was "devastating" to receive the rating but the issues were "immediately rectified". He added: "Having been through these inspections many, many times and always been okay, the main issue was a lack of paperwork being on the premises, along with the floor in the main kitchen needing repairing, which we've made completely safe and sound, with no cracks. When you haven't got paperwork that's a big piece of it, along with some other bits and pieces. We had our finger off the pulse.
"A couple of things in the fridge were technically out of date but I don't think that for us was a big issue in the scoring mechanism. I think there were lots of little things rather than one significant piece of awful food hygiene. That doesn't mean I'm not taking it seriously. Of course we absolutely did.
"For me personally, this is going to sound like an overused term but my mental health took a real kicking. I was so disappointed. It took me a little while to get objective about it... Having met up with [the environmental health officer], they work pretty well with you, trying to be with you rather than against you. I was still incredibly shocked that we got a zero and that's why we've applied for the remarking, which happens within three months.
"I know on social media there have been a couple of people going, 'Oh my God, they've got a zero.' That's out of our control so I haven't commented on that. Our kitchen is open. I have no problem with any customer asking, 'Can I come into your kitchen and see how your food's prepared?' The answer would be yes."
Mr Minns said the team has been retrained, adding: "What all the team know is what's on the paperwork, why it's on the paperwork, what it means visibly, and how to actually do it. What we can demonstrate is our paperwork is merely evidence of what we actually do, and that's the most important piece... We will receive a re-score in the next three months and we truly believe it will be at least a four."
Knighton Football Club Social Club
Address: Brynycastell, Ludlow Road, Knighton, Powys
Business type: Pub
Date of inspection: April 29, 2023
Hygienic food handling: Urgent improvement necessary
Cleanliness and condition of facilities and building: Urgent improvement necessary
Management of food safety: Urgent improvement necessary
What the club says:
Gary Cooper, who has been club chairman for 20 years, said there was a problem with mice at the venue. "We've put door-brushes under the doors, filled holes in the ceiling," he said. "The day after they came, we ripped everything out of the kitchen and filled all the holes in, absolutely blitzed it. We've had pest control in and there's nothing there now at all. They were well impressed. They said, 'Gary, what a fantastic job you've done.'
"Behind the bar, we wash our glasses by hand. We were told we should have separate basins, one for washing hands and the other one for glasses... Everything they told me to do, I've done it... One of the new girls has just passed a hygiene course at level two. Our paperwork is up to date now."
Mr Cooper said the club's food includes sausages, nuggets and chips. "Whatever we buy is never in the freezer long," he added. "It's gone within two weeks, put it like that."
AMR Catering at Hay-on-Wye Conservative Club
Address: 35 Lion Street, Hay-on-Wye, Powys
Business type: Pub / social club
Date of inspection: December 22, 2022
Hygienic food handling: Major improvement necessary
Cleanliness and condition of facilities and building: Generally satisfactory
Management of food safety: Urgent improvement necessary
What the club says:
Chef and club steward Armindo Rodrigues said: "They came in a few days before Christmas. It was a very busy day and we were short of staff. I also run the bar and I had to go there at 3pm to cover for someone. I didn't have time to tidy the kitchen up before going to the bar. I was waiting for more staff to come in at 5pm. [The inspector] came at 3.30pm and gave that rating. There was a bit of washing up to be done. Two bits of broccoli were left over in a dish. There were no issues with health and safety."
Asked why the club performed so poorly in hygienic food handling and management of food safety, Mr Rodrigues replied: "There were no complaints with that. I did my refresher course a couple of months ago and passed with 100%. She can write what she wants but I never had any complaints. I've been here 11 years and never given anyone any food poisoning. I'm very conscious about that.
"This is the best place to eat in town, my friend. We do ribs, hunter's chicken, steaks, gammon, fish. Sunday lunch is my strongest [dish]. I've been in the industry 30 years and never had a zero rating but she caught me at the wrong time. It hasn't affected much. We are still busy."
Authentic Japanese Foods Ltd / Cafe Up
Address: Bay Studios, Fabian Way, Crymlyn Burrows, Neath Port Talbot
Business type: Cafe
Date of inspection: December 7, 2022
Hygienic food handling: Improvement necessary
Cleanliness and condition of facilities and building: Major improvement necessary
Management of food safety: Major improvement necessary
What the business says:
A spokesman for the business told WalesOnline: "We have got a zero rating because we didn't have running hot tap water when the environmental health officer came. By the way, I need to pay £180 to ask environmental health to [reinspect]. It used to be free."
He added that the cafe's Google reviews — averaging five stars after 48 ratings — gave a "more realistic" appraisal. "The council didn't inspect the cafe for four years because they take your food safety so seriously," the spokesman continued. "Hot water was restored as soon as a plumber could be found. Unfortunately the council had to score what they found on the day and we don't care really. Pathetic."
Hossain Food Store
Address: 78 Tudor Street, Riverside, Cardiff
Business type: Retailer
Date of inspection: February 23, 2023
Hygienic food handling: Major improvement necessary
Cleanliness and condition of facilities and building: Improvement necessary
Management of food safety: Major improvement necessary
What the business says:
Jamil Hossain, who has run the shop since last December, said there were issues with temperatures and expiry dates being checked. "Under the fridge it was quite dirty," he said. "The health officer comes and tells us, so we do everything nice and clean. Everything is okay now. We are writing down the temperature for each item.
"I put the rating sticker on the door. We are not hiding anything from the customers. The inspector will be revisiting us very soon."
Classic Fried Chicken
Address: 220 City Road, Roath, Cardiff
Business type: Takeaway
Date of inspection: March 22, 2023
Hygienic food handling: Improvement necessary
Cleanliness and condition of facilities and building: Major improvement necessary
Management of food safety: Major improvement necessary
What the business says:
"We were away for holidays and came back to open up, only to get an unexpected visit from health and safety. Our diary of recorded procedures was not up to date due to staff members being away on holiday, causing the records not to be available for the inspector. We are awaiting a reinspection and are on top of things now."
White Horse Inn
Address: Llanfair Dyffryn Clwyd, Ruthin, Denbighshire
Business type: Pub
Date of inspection: September 29, 2022
Hygienic food handling: Improvement necessary
Cleanliness and condition of facilities and building: Major improvement necessary
Management of food safety: Major improvement necessary
What the business says:
"We are currently waiting on a re-score. We are confident that our score will be back to our usual high standard."
Choc Box
Address: 1 Treforris Road, Dwygyfylchi, Penmaenmawr, Conwy
Business type: Retailer
Date of inspection: March 9, 2022
Hygienic food handling: Improvement necessary
Cleanliness and condition of facilities and building: Improvement necessary
Management of food safety: Urgent improvement necessary
What the business says:
WalesOnline was unable to reach Choc Box for a new comment, but last August its employee Sarah Brown said: "[The rating] is because we've got no hot water. That's literally it. We're finding it hard to get a plumber and every one we've tried has let us down. We do sweets, where kids can come and pick out sweets in their bags. You need to clean all the utensils and tubs but because there's no hot water, we can't do that. We've put that section out of use since the inspection. That was the advice from the inspector."
Ms Brown said the boiler broke only a few days before the inspection in March 2022. "The boiler exploded on me," she said. "I'm OK. I just got soaked.
"No other food is being prepared on-site. We do have hot water but it's from a coffee machine. We can use it to fill buckets with hot water so we can clean the floor and that. But the inspector said we can't use that for the pick and mix. We thought, 'It's still hot water, it does the same thing.'"
Khyber Cuisine
Address: 21 Corporation Road, Grangetown, Cardiff
Business type: Restaurant
Date of inspection: February 15, 2023
Hygienic food handling: Major improvement necessary
Cleanliness and condition of facilities and building: Improvement necessary
Management of food safety: Major improvement necessary
Mary's Roadside Cafe
Address: 4 Stadium Close, Leckwith, Cardiff
Business type: Mobile caterer
Date of inspection: October 26, 2022
Hygienic food handling: Improvement necessary
Cleanliness and condition of facilities and building: Major improvement necessary
Management of food safety: Major improvement necessary
Oasis Kitchen
Address: Splott Road Methodist Church, 69B Splott Road, Splott, Cardiff
Business type: Catering premises
Date of inspection: March 21, 2023
Hygienic food handling: Generally satisfactory
Cleanliness and condition of facilities and building: Major improvement necessary
Management of food safety: Urgent improvement necessary
UPDATE: On June 29, 2023, Oasis Kitchen received confirmation that it had been inspected on June 15 and received a new rating of four, which is its current rating.
Y Felin
Address: 19 - 20, Plas Melin, Whitchurch, Cardiff
Business type: Retailer
Date of inspection: July 16, 2022
Hygienic food handling: Urgent improvement necessary
Cleanliness and condition of facilities and building: Good
Management of food safety: Urgent improvement necessary
Swan Catering
Address: 1 Tirpenry Street, Morriston, Swansea
Business type: Caterer
Date of inspection: March 14, 2023
Hygienic food handling: Major improvement necessary
Cleanliness and condition of facilities and building: Urgent improvement necessary
Management of food safety: Urgent improvement necessary
Smoky Touch
Address: 1 St Helens Road, Sandfields, Swansea
Business type: Restaurant
Date of inspection: May 2, 2023
Hygienic food handling: Major improvement necessary
Cleanliness and condition of facilities and building: Improvement necessary
Management of food safety: Major improvement necessary
Shunfa
Address: 76 St Helens Road, Sandfields, Swansea
Business type: Retailer
Date of inspection: August 16, 2022
Hygienic food handling: Urgent improvement necessary
Cleanliness and condition of facilities and building: Major improvement necessary
Management of food safety: Urgent improvement necessary
Pizza Hot 4 You
Address: Hot 4 You, 5 Broad Street, Barry, Vale Of Glamorgan
Business type: Restaurant
Date of inspection: February 1, 2023
Hygienic food handling: Major improvement necessary
Cleanliness and condition of facilities and building: Major improvement necessary
Management of food safety: Urgent improvement necessary
Newport Supermarket
Address: 248 Corporation Road, Newport
Business type: Retailer
Date of inspection: December 19, 2022
Hygienic food handling: Major improvement necessary
Cleanliness and condition of facilities and building: Major improvement necessary
Management of food safety: Major improvement necessary
Top-Up Convenience Store
Address: 163 Corporation Road, Newport
Business type: Retailer
Date of inspection: November 10, 2022
Hygienic food handling: Major improvement necessary
Cleanliness and condition of facilities and building: Major improvement necessary
Management of food safety: Urgent improvement necessary
United Foods
Address: 24 - 26 Jeffrey Street, Newport
Business type: Retailer
Date of inspection: July 25, 2022
Hygienic food handling: Major improvement necessary
Cleanliness and condition of facilities and building: Improvement necessary
Management of food safety: Major improvement necessary
Gourmet House
Address: 59 Mount Pleasant Road, Ebbw Vale, Blaenau Gwent
Business type: Takeaway
Date of inspection: December 12, 2022
Hygienic food handling: Improvement necessary
Cleanliness and condition of facilities and building: Major improvement necessary
Management of food safety: Urgent improvement necessary
Level Inn
Address: 10A Bridge Street, Ebbw Vale, Blaenau Gwent
Business type: Hotel
Date of inspection: October 27, 2022
Hygienic food handling: Major improvement necessary
Cleanliness and condition of facilities and building: Generally satisfactory
Management of food safety: Urgent improvement necessary
New Red Lantern
Address: 49 Wyndham Street, Bridgend
Business type: Takeaway
Date of inspection: December 1, 2022
Hygienic food handling: Major improvement necessary
Cleanliness and condition of facilities and building: Improvement necessary
Management of food safety: Urgent improvement necessary
Tasty Chinese Takeaway
Address: 8 Parry Road, Sandfields, Neath Port Talbot
Business type: Takeaway
Date of inspection: March 27, 2023
Hygienic food handling: Improvement necessary
Cleanliness and condition of facilities and building: Major improvement necessary
Management of food safety: Major improvement necessary
Amo's Restaurant
Address: 13 Monnow Street, Monmouth, Monmouthshire
Business type: Restaurant
Date of inspection: December 14, 2022
Hygienic food handling: Major improvement necessary
Cleanliness and condition of facilities and building: Urgent improvement necessary
Management of food safety: Major improvement necessary
Frankies Chicken and Pizza
Address: 7 High Street, Wrexham
Business type: Restaurant
Date of inspection: January 11, 2023
Hygienic food handling: Major improvement necessary
Cleanliness and condition of facilities and building: Improvement necessary
Management of food safety: Major improvement necessary
Sheikh Balti House
Address: 45 - 47 High Street, Coedpoeth, Wrexham
Business type: Restaurant
Date of inspection: October 11, 2022
Hygienic food handling: Major improvement necessary
Cleanliness and condition of facilities and building: Major improvement necessary
Management of food safety: Major improvement necessary
Storey Arms Burger Van
Address: Storey Arms lay-by, Libanus, Brecon, Powys
Business type: Mobile caterer
Date of inspection: November 29, 2022
Hygienic food handling: Major improvement necessary
Cleanliness and condition of facilities and building: Urgent improvement necessary
Management of food safety: Major improvement necessary
Beachside Cafe
Address: 5 Ffordd Y Traeth, Abermaw, Gwynedd
Business type: Cafe
Date of inspection: March 30, 2023
Hygienic food handling: Urgent improvement necessary
Cleanliness and condition of facilities and building: Urgent improvement necessary
Management of food safety: Major improvement necessary
Godfathers
Address: 28 Queen Street, Rhyl, Denbighshire
Business type: Takeaway
Date of inspection: February 7, 2023
Hygienic food handling: Major improvement necessary
Cleanliness and condition of facilities and building: Generally satisfactory
Management of food safety: Urgent improvement necessary
Leonardo's Delicatessen
Address: 4 Well Street, Ruthin, Denbighshire
Business type: Retailer
Date of inspection: February 15, 2023
Hygienic food handling: Improvement necessary
Cleanliness and condition of facilities and building: Generally satisfactory
Management of food safety: Urgent improvement necessary
Pizza Pan Takeaway
Address: 15 Bastion Road, Prestatyn, Denbighshire
Business type: Takeaway
Date of inspection: October 6, 2022
Hygienic food handling: Improvement necessary
Cleanliness and condition of facilities and building: Major improvement necessary
Management of food safety: Major improvement necessary
Seagull International Foods
Address: 32 - 34 Bedford Street, Rhyl, Denbighshire
Business type: Retailer
Date of inspection: August 17, 2022
Hygienic food handling: Improvement necessary
Cleanliness and condition of facilities and building: Major improvement necessary
Management of food safety: Major improvement necessary
UPDATE: On June 29, 2023, Oasis Kitchen received confirmation that it had been inspected on June 15 and received a new rating of four, which is its current rating.
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