Owner fined for dirty restaurant
by Hammersmith and Fulham Press Office
04/11/2008
The owner of a filthy Hammersmith restaurant which closed until it cleaned up its act has been fined.
Ahmad Ahmadi, the proprietor of Mahdi Persian restaurant on King Street, pleaded guilty to four serious breaches of food safety legislation at West London Magistrates Court on October 15. Ahmadi was fined £1,200 and ordered to pay costs of £1,810 to the council.During an inspection of the restaurant in October last year, environmental health officers from Hammersmith & Fulham Council found the kitchen was filthy – the floor, walls and shelves were encrusted with dirt and bits of food were on the floor, and behind a large white chiller cabinet.
There were several large holes in the kitchen wall, the floor of the pot washing area was bare concrete and in a poor condition, and staff had no hand-wash at the washbasin or any way to dry their hands.
The restaurant closed voluntarily until it was thoroughly cleaned and disinfected, and stayed shut for several days.
The court heard that it was not the first time Ahmadi had been warned about the unhygienic state of the kitchen and restaurant, and that a string of problems dated back to November 2005.
