Pictures of a filthy Chinese takeout that was shut down by health inspectors for the second time in four years give people the stomach flu.
Revolting photos show the filthy kitchen coated with rat droppings and puddles of rodent urine, with meat left to thaw in a sink and thrown into filthy washbasins.
When he showed up in Grimsby Magistrates’ Court on July 15, owner Wen Yi Cao, 50, of Grimsby, confessed 13 serious food hygiene offences.
Last November, while inspecting China House in Grimsby for a regular inspection, council authorities found the startling discovery.
They briefly closed it down because they believed it constituted a “imminent danger,” but it has since reopened.
Pictures taken inside the restaurant on Pasture Street and posted on Facebook by North East Lincolnshire Council on July 19 also show soiled kitchen implements, discoloured tea towels, and mouldy food containers.
While other meat was placed in filthy washing-up basins, raw chicken chunks had been allowed to thaw in a sink.
The kitchen surfaces were covered with a thick layer of grease, mould, and food, and boxes of sauces and spices had been chewed on by animals.
Cold food was left out since the refrigerators were overflowing, and raw and ready-to-eat food preparation was also done on a cutting board.
North East Lincolnshire Council health inspectors stopped the takeaway after determining it constituted a “imminent danger” to the general public’s health.
China House has been forced to shut twice in the previous four years.
In 2018, after receiving a customer complaint, officials went to the location and found that rainwater was entering the room used for food preparation, forcing a six-day closure.
According to testimony given in court, food that was “unsafe in that it was unsuitable for human consumption” was sold.
Yi Cao also neglected to make sure that staff members received supervision or food hygiene training.
Additionally, he did not maintain food at the proper temperature and used ineffective insect control methods.
The facility was temporarily shut down because there was a serious threat to the public’s health.
Yi Cao received a $358 fine, was had to pay court costs of £850 and a victim surcharge of $36.
Social media users voiced their displeasure at the images that the health inspectors provided after the incident.
Andy Webber, a Facebook user, wrote: “Yikes, this place puts the Grim in Grimsby!” Stay for the sickness; come for the chow mein!
Oliver Roe continued, “I was surprised the rats didn’t think twice about eating there.
If you wanted to eat anything from the Grimsby bus station, you’d be better off licking the seat!
China House received a food hygiene grade of three, or “sufficient,” when it was re-inspected by council personnel in January of this year.
Both delivery and pickup are presently available from the takeout.
The portfolio holder for safer and stronger communities, Councillor Ron Shepherd, said: “I am glad that the proper action has been taken and that he has been brought before the courts.”
“The amount of food hygiene violations is concerning. Poor business practises won’t be accepted from companies.
Our environmental health inspectors put in a lot of effort to protect the public’s safety as well as provide food establishment owners with the guidance and knowledge they need to follow food safety regulations.
“We need to safeguard consumers from companies that endanger people’s health.”