The Drum and Monkey pub on Moss Lane in Alderley Edge has been told it must act to make major improvements after a council inspector found a series of hygiene failures.
The venue was given one out of five in its most recent inspection – where staff were reluctant to be identified due to the state of the kitchens.
A report by the Cheshire East Council inspector stated: “The entire kitchen was dirty and needed to be thoroughly cleaned.
“The conditions were so poor that the chefs were at first reluctant to give me their names.”
The report said: “Due to the poor conditions found on site, it was evident that there was no effective food safety management system in place.
“The chefs were also unaware of what procedures that they should be following.”
It added: “The pest control records indicate that the kitchen had been dirty for some time before the visit and management had failed to act on advice from the company to keep the kitchen clean.”
The inspector reminded the pub’s staff they have a legal duty to keep the kitchen clean, whilst listing a catalogue of concerns relating to cleanliness and food handling.
They observed raw chicken being defrosted on top of a chest freezer in a room which was not adequately pest proofed, and raw fish being defrosted under cold running water.
They advised that both raw fish and meat should be defrosted in the bottom of a fridge to prevent cross contamination with other food.
The inspector also found food was being stored uncovered in the fridge, and they had concerns about possibility of cross contamination.
They warned there could be serious food poisoning outbreaks unless the kitchen is maintained in a clean condition.
Their report also found the back area where the chest freezers are kept was not adequately pest-proofed.
They said: “All areas where food is stored or prepared should be sufficiently pest-proofed.”
They were also dissatisfied with the condition of the floor in the pot wash area, as well as a build-up of miscellaneous items around the boiler cupboard and chest freezers.
Other maintenance issues they observed included the hand wash basin being insufficiently sealed to the wall making it difficult to keep clean, and a broken handle on a chest freezer.
The inspection was carried out on 24th June 2022, and the venue has been given until mid-September to improve.
The inspector reviewed the kitchen and back areas of the pub as well as pest control records, and graded it one mark above the lowest possible score band.
A spokesperson for The Drum and Monkey said: “Like many hospitality businesses we’ve really struggled with staffing post-pandemic and in order to keep operating we’ve had to rely on agency staff for the kitchen, who unfortunately haven’t met the standards we would normally expect and require.
“We take the report very seriously and following this report we have made the decision that The Drum and Monkey will be put under new management.
“We are in the process of putting improved measures in place – to rectify and make sure that next inspection is faultless.
“We would like to stress that the reputation of The Drum and Monkey has been excellent to date and this is something we really value and want to do whatever it takes to maintain and hopefully get it back.
“We pride ourselves on being a community pub and during lockdown suffered immensely as did many hospitality businesses and have been trying to build ourselves back up since the disruption that Covid-19 had brought to our industry.
“On the day inspection we had unfortunately had a flood a few days before we had a very busy lunch and we’re in the process of cleaning down and resetting the fridges, we minimised the menu but looking back we should have closed the kitchen.
“ Since the report the [council inspection team] have been back and are happy with the steps we have taken to rectify the points raised.”
