Here's a press release from the council relating to breaches in hygiene discovered last Feb. The establishment carried out a deep clean and opened again the same month. Greenwich venue fined for serious food hygiene breaches Greenwich Inc (Trading) Limited has been fined £10,500 with £8,675.52 costs after a visit from the Royal Borough of Greenwich Environmental Health team found serious breaches of food hygiene at their Trafalgar Tavern venue in Greenwich Town Centre last year. The sentence was handed out by Greenwich Magistrates’ Court on Wednesday February 20. An additional £15 victim surcharge was also issued, taking the total amount payable to £19,190.52. Following a routine visit by Environmental Health Inspectors on February 16 2012 they found evidence of a serious mouse infestation including mouse droppings in the main kitchen, on shelves and in a store room. There was no access to hot water or hand washing facilities and raw sewage was found to be backing up into sinks, which had then been covered in cling film. The condition of the kitchen posed an immediate and serious food hygiene danger so a temporary closure order was imposed to allow for urgent improvements to be made. The owners carried out a deep clean and other improvement works including the fitting a new boiler. As a result the premises were able to open again on February 21 2012. Councillor Maureen O’Mara, the Royal Borough’s Cabinet Member for Community Safety and the Environment said: “The Royal Borough has a legal duty to ensure that local food premises operate safely and we always offer advice and guidance to food businesses to help them meet their legal requirements. We’re also committed to ensuring that people can visit and eat at local restaurants across the Royal Borough in the knowledge that safe and essential food hygiene standards are being followed.” “Our formal enforcement policy states that we routinely seek to prosecute premises whenever a temporary closure notice is served. The owners of the Trafalgar Tavern pleaded guilty to the charges brought against them and the sentence handed down from the Court reflects the evidence heard during the case.” “We welcome and actively encourage new food business to set up in the Royal Borough but this is on the clear understanding that they place a high priority on preparing and serving their food in a hygienic working environment.”
How can such ignorance of the standards required of a business preparing food for the general public result in merely a fine? Especially for a group that runs several sites. Clearly a stronger reprimand - restricting their ability to trade - is more appropriate.
The Inc Group is the biggest joke! And annoyingly as a local, they have deprived us of some great pubs - The Trafalgar clearly cant be trusted; the Gypsy Moth has the worst service in London and even Bar Inc, which should be packed as the only late bar in touristy studenty Greenwich, instead is a ghost town as the bouncer/owner attitude to entry and pricing is so up their own ***. The sooner Inc shuts up shop and moves on to overcharging revellers at the o2 the sooner Greenwich can hopefully get a few decent lively bars back - currently theres no athmosphere here on a night out aside from the fringe pubs in East Greenwich and Royal Hill. Inc and the rubbish pub chains are driving people away. We need Antic bars to come to Greenwich and give us somewhere cool!
