‘Contamination risk’ found at Beatles-themed city centre hotel

Health inspectors found a risk of ‘serious contamination’ at a city centre Beatles-themed hotel that was slapped with a zero hygiene rating.

The Hard Days Hotel, the only Beatles-themed hotel in the world, was given the worst possible hygiene rating following a visit from Environmental Health Officers from Liverpool City Council on April 19 of this year.

The Hard Days Night opened its doors to customers in 2008 and was sold to international hotel chain Millennium Hotels & Resorts (MHR) for £13.8m in 2015. Housed in the Grade II-listed Central Buildings, it is the only Beatles-themed hotel in the world.

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After the zero rating was published, the ECHO contacted the hotel’s owners for a response. A spokesperson said the rating ‘did not reflect the standard of food hygiene’ in the hotel’s kitchens and blamed the score on ‘a preparation utensil being mislabelled.’

The ECHO has since received a full copy of the inspection report by the Environmental Health team, which shows there were other issues raised that led to the zero rating.

Under the headline of Food Hygiene and Safety, inspectors said that during the inspection it was noted the raw vacuum packer was being used for ready to eat food products. The report said this ‘posed a serious risk of contamination’ and that a number of foods were discarded.

The inspection report also noted that some out of date food was found, including Honey Jelly and Pear Puree.

On structural issues, the inspectors found mould in the undercounter freezer in the hotel, adding: “You must clean to remove mould or replace seal as necessary and maintain.”

Holes and gaps were also noted in the ceiling spaces of the kitchen, which inspectors said was a pests risk and found that there was not adequate hot water in a hand washing basin in the basement area.

Food businesses in Liverpool are routinely inspected by local authority hygiene teams. A health officer will look at three criteria when inspecting a premises. These include how hygienically the food is prepared, cooked, re-heated, cooled and stored, the cleanliness, layout, lighting and ventilation of the building and how the business manages what it does to make sure food is safe.

Each establishment receives their rating following an inspection conducted by a food safety officer from the council. A rating of zero means urgent improvement is necessary, one means major improvement is required while two means improvement is needed. A rating of three means the premises is generally satisfactory, four is good and five is very good.

In the original response, a spokesperson for the Hard Days Hotel said: “‘Hard Days Night Hotel, Liverpool, prides itself on a previously gained 5-star EHO rating for Food Safety. The recent result from the EHO inspection does not reflect the standard of food hygiene in our kitchens and was in fact given due to a preparation utensil being mislabelled.

“The hotel management team has booked a retesting and we look forward to once again re-gaining the 5-star rating. The Hard Days Night Hotel team is dedicated to providing an excellent service for its hotel and restaurant guests and will continue to improve food quality standards.”

The hotel said it would not be commenting further at this time.

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