Gosport pub closed due to mice infestation bounces back with hygiene rating of five
THE Cocked Hat, in Gosport, was closed for two days due to a mice infestation – but has been given a five star rating after a hygiene inspection last week.
The Greene King-owned pub, in Privett Road, was forced to call in a pest control firm on Thursday, January 30 after several mice were seen on the premises.
An environmental health team from Gosport Borough Council reviewed the premises a week later, leading to the pub’s five-star rating to be renewed.
Operations manager Andrea Greenwood said she was ‘delighted’ at the announcement.
Andrea said: ‘We’re delighted to be given a five-star rating as we operate our pub to the highest hygiene standards.
‘We hope this reinspection will go a long way towards showing people that we are a responsible pub that treats hygiene and pest control extremely seriously. Any food business can potentially experience a problem with pests and we believe we acted in a responsible and conscientious way to deal with the problem immediately.
‘We would like to thank everyone who has supported us over the past fortnight and also the environmental health team at Gosport Borough Council who have been tremendously supportive.’
The pub had suffered nearly all of its bookings being cancelled following the closure, according to the operations manager.
She said: ‘It has been upsetting to see some of the untrue comments posted on social media regarding our recent decision to close briefly to allow us to responsibly deal with a mouse sighting in the pub.’