Inspectors Say Ealing Restaurant Needs 'Major Improvement'

Osteria del Portico will undergo another visit soon

Food inspectors have told one Ealing's highly established restaurants it needs major inprovement.

Osteria del Portico, which is tucked behind wooden doors just off the Green, has been serving rustic Italian cooked food to regulars for many years.

However following a a food check on March 6th, the restaurant was given an overall rating of just 1 - meaning major improvement was necessary. The overall rating is given after an assessment of various areas within the restaurant.

The structural compliance - which refers to cleanliness, layout and condition of the building, was rated as very good. The food and hygiene procedures were deemed to be 'fair', but it was the confidence in management which scored lowest.

Inspectors said they had 'little' confidence meaning the restaurant had a varying record of compliance; poor appreciation of hazards and control measures and no food safety management system.

Manager and owner, Giovanni Balboni, says they didn't have certain paperwork to show the inspectors at the time and believe this is the reason for their low score:

''We understand that health and safety inspectors use a points system depending on their finding. We did not have on the premises the temperature book by the time of their visit and this is considered to be a major breach.

''Of course we have a temperature book and as we now understand, it must be kept on premises at all times. We are on an ongoing programme of major improvement in our main kitchen.''

Mr Balboni says the inspectors will revisit soon and he is confident that everything will be up to standard.

7th April 2016