'Unacceptable and unhygienic' - Food inspectors raise concerns after visit to The Curry Garden in Gosport
One star food hygiene rating handed out to Gosport curry house
Food hygiene inspectors have visited an Indian takeaway restaurant in Gosport with concerns raised around “unacceptable and unhygienic” practices.
The inspectors visited The Curry Garden on Gregson Avenue on Thursday, August 13 with the eatery being handed a rating of one. Some practices were seen as causing a risk of cross contamination while an inspector watched a chef handling food before wiping their hands on their apron and continuing to handle other food which was described as “unacceptable”.
Inspectors judge the establishments in three areas; hygienic food handling; cleanliness and condition of facilities and building; and management of food safety. The Curry Garden’s hygienic food handling and cleanliness of facilities was rated as ‘improvement necessary’ while its management of food safety was deemed ‘major improvement necessary’.
A number of issues were flagged in the food hygiene report including lettuce being cut up on a red chopping bag instead of a green one which could have caused cross contamination. Staff also told the inspectors that hot food is allowed to cool for two to three hours before being put in the fridge/freezer when it should be cooled as quickly as possible within 90 minutes to prevent any surviving bacteria growing in the food.
Cooked rice was found stored inside a microwave and hour and a half after it had been put in there. The inspector then wrote: “At the conclusion of the inspection, one of the chefs was seen scooping rice into takeaway containers and then wiping his hands on his apron before handling other foods. No hand washing was observed. Such practices are unacceptable and unhygienic.”
Several flies were also seen landing on equipment in the kitchen at the time of the inspection with the report stating the back should be closed or have a fly screen fitted. Rubbish bins in the kitchen were also noted to have no lids which attracted flies.
The report also noted that cleaning was required in several areas of the kitchen.
The Curry Garden had 21-days to appeal against the rating before it was released. The hygiene rating can be found at https://ratings.food.gov.uk/business/627267/the-curry-garden