A customer is said to have attended A&E after eating a dish contaminated with nuts at the Golden Phoenix in London’s Chinatown (Picture: Josh Layton/Metro.co.uk)
A Chinese restaurant was given a zero-star food hygiene rating after a diner with a ‘severe and life-threatening’ nut allergy was allegedly served a contaminated dish.
The customer said they had needed to attend hospital despite telling a waiter at the Golden Phoenix in London’s Chinatown about the condition when ordering a set meal with a chicken satay main course.
An inspector who visited 10 days later found that there were ‘traces of nut in the complainant’s meal’, resulting in the diner having to attend A&E at St Thomas’s Hospital in Westminster.
The environmental health officer recorded signs of a mice infestation and a ‘lack of cleaning throughout’ when they turned up on April 20, 2022.
Mouse droppings were found behind a cooking range and in an area where an ice machine is located, according to a report by Westminster City Council, which participates in the National Food Hygiene Rating Scheme.
The restaurant ‘sincerely apologised’ to the customer today and said ‘strenuous efforts’ have been made to raise standards after the visit.
The alarm was raised by a person with an allergy to nuts, who is said to have told the waiter this was ‘severe and life-threatening’.
Seated in the restaurant at around 6pm, the diner asked for Set Menu B, with the satay chicken sauce to be swapped for a suitable alternative.
The waiter said this would be a plain sauce, but did not mention cross-contamination, according to the inspection report.
Inspectors visited the Golden Phoenix restaurant in London’s Chinatown after a complaint by a customer (Picture: Josh Layton/Metro.co.uk)
Cllr Aicha Less, Cabinet Member for Communities and Public Protection, told Metro.co.uk: Our Food Safety team does a great job ensuring that diners in Westminster can be reassured they are eating in clean and properly managed restaurants and eateries.
‘It is incredible to think in this day and age there are still places out there that don’t know about the dangers of cross-contamination.
‘This restaurant was very lucky that the customer was prepared. If they hadn’t been the consequences could have been much worse.
‘What’s particularly worrying is that having witnessed this, the management took no action. And to top it all, when our officers inspected the kitchens, they found out-of-date food and a lack of hygiene throughout.
‘I’d advise anyone to check a restaurant’s rating before dining.’
The menu at the Golden Phoenix which was given a rock-bottom rating by food safety inspector (Picture: Josh Layton)
The Golden Phoenix was awarded 0 out of a maximum five stars, meaning urgent improvement necessary, which was live on the Food Standards Agency website as of October 14.
The report states: ‘Unfortunately, there were traces of nut in the complainant’s meal and they had to use their EpiPen and attend St Thomas’s A&E. I was informed that the complainant contacted you, but you undertook no investigation on how this could have happened and how this could be prevented in the future. You need to put in place clear procedures relating to customers who have allergies.
‘These procedures need to be embedded in the form of training.
‘This should include front and back of house staff.’
The restaurant was told by a council officer to put in place clear procedures relating to customers who have allergies (Picture: Josh Layton/Metro.co.uk)
Fish balls were found to be a day over the use-by date, leading inspectors to write ‘you need to improve your method of stock rotation’.
The report also found ‘the entire kitchen and storage rooms were unclean, especially behind equipment’ and there was rusty shelving inside a freezer.
Evidence of mice droppings were also found at the restaurant, which is located at 37 and 38 Gerrard Street.
‘There was evidence of mouse droppings behind the cooking range and in the area where the ice machine is located,’ the report states.
‘Thoroughly clean up the area and disinfect the area. Seek advice from your pest control operative’
The restaurant was also pulled up over records which the inspector recorded as possibly fabricated in the letter addressed to the Company Officer.
The official wrote: ‘I have enclosed a copy of your records for cooling of food. I have suspicions these have been fabricated!!
‘The day of the 04/04/2022, 05/04/2022 and 06/04/2022 are the same as 23/03/2022, 24/03/2022 and 25/03/2022. Also recording these temperatures are not a legal requirement but to falsify documents is a criminal offence.’
The Golden Phoenix was given timescales to carry out improvement work after the inspection (Picture: Josh Layton/Metro.co.uk)
One of the findings reads: ‘During the inspection it was apparent that your food handlers had not received any form of training in food hygiene.
‘You need to ensure food handlers are appropriately supervised or trained.’
The letter from Westminster City Council was addressed to Kam Fung Wong Ltd, which is registered to an address in Edgware, north London.
It states: ‘The purpose of my visit was to undertake a programmed food hygiene inspection and investigate a serious complaint.’
The company was given timescales to carry out the improvement work.
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The restaurant’s management team said in an email: ‘In our menus we do have warning labels of food allergy. If any customer mentioned that he or she has such issues then appropriate advice would be given.
‘The unfortunate event took place more than six months ago and we cannot identify who served this customer. As such we cannot rebut the allegation.
‘Also after 17 days, the Inspector still found “trace of nut in the complainant’s meal”, which we can only take at face value.
‘We regret what has happened to the complainant and sincerely apologise.
‘We are prepared to offer compensation and close this unhappy chapter.’
The management team added: ‘As regarding the report you have obtained, strenuous efforts have been since made and the advice of the Health Inspector was taken seriously and followed.
‘The last visit was made on 20 May we were only asked to follow up with the procedure. A re-visit is imminent and we expect as discussed with the Health Inspection in May that a rating of at least 3 would be rewarded.’
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Inspectors found mouse droppings and a ‘lack of cleaning throughout’ after a customer made a complaint.