Fat Panda, in New Road, was told its food hygiene standards needed “major improvement” at its Food Standards Agency (FSA) inspection on June 30.
The takeaway has since permanently closed and was not formally shut down as a result of its poor food hygiene rating, a Havering Council spokesperson has confirmed.
This paper was also informed by the council’s environmental health team that the business said it was “likely to cease trading soon” at the June 30 inspection.
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A Freedom of Information (FOI) request by the Recorder has now uncovered the full food hygiene report from this last inspection.
The report reveals that monitoring, training and pest control records were inspected at the visit, with Fat Panda scoring a one out of five overall – the second lowest rating.
Inspectors found open food which was “not date labelled” and “several” food items which were left uncovered in the fridges and freezers.
According to the report, meat was “uncovered [and] kept on cardboard boxes while defrosting”.
Another section mentions that the kitchen floor of the takeaway was “covered with cardboard boxes”; it is not clear if these are the same boxes the meat was left on.
Issues with the facilities were also discovered at the inspection, including no hot water and “damaged” sections of the kitchen floor.
The report said: “You must repair the floor to allow effective cleaning.
“You must repair the broken wash hand basin in the kitchen and this must be provided with soap and drying facilities.
“You must ensure that your toilet is kept clean [and] provided with hot water.”
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The inspector added that, at the time of the inspection, the takeaway could not provide a food safety management system – which is a legal requirement.
The Recorder was unable to contact Fat Panda for comment, as its website has now expired and its phone number is invalid.
A Havering Council spokesperson said: “We are unsure if the business closed because of the poor food hygiene rating but we can confirm that the council did not formally close the business.”
