Ye Olde Nags Head Hotel Castleton: Zero-star food hygiene rating for popular Peak District restaurant

A restaurant and hotel in Castleton, High Peak, has recently received the lowest hygiene rating possible following an inspection.

Ye Olde Nags Head Hotel, on Cross Street, was inspected on June 20, 2023, and was handed a food hygiene rating of zero out of five, meaning ‘urgent’ improvements were necessary.

Despite the damning report, the establishment says it is “confident” it will return to its previous hygiene rating of five at its next inspection, and has invited customers to “inspect” their kitchen.

Many authorities use the national Food Hygiene Rating Scheme, which has been designed to help consumers choose where to eat out or shop for food by giving them information about the hygiene standards in food outlets at the time they are inspected.

An inspection is carried out by an environmental health officer (EHO) from the authority each establishment is based, and three key areas are looked at:

• How hygienically the food is handled - how it is prepared, cooked, cooled, stored, and what measures are taken to prevent food being contaminated with bacteria
• The condition of the structure of the premises, including cleanliness, layout, lighting, ventilation, equipment and other facilities

• The management of food safety - how you manage and record what you to do make sure food is safe

In this case, High Peak Borough Council carried out the inspection at Ye Olde Nags Head Hotel.

The inspection found that the hygienic handling of food was in need of improvement. However, ‘major’ improvements were needed in the cleanliness and condition of facilities and building and management of food safety.

In response to the inspection, the establishment has said that two members of staff were dismissed, and the kitchen was closed for three days.

Ye Olde Nags Head Hotel said: "Further to the mentioned inspection on June 20 2023, both the general manager and head chef that were responsible for the premises at that time, were dismissed. The kitchen was voluntarily closed, deep cleaned and refurbished, and reopened three days later.

"A revisit from EHO [environmental health officer] is imminent, and we feel confident that we will soon return to our previous five star rating. Our much valued customers are welcome to inspect our kitchen, if they wish to do so."

Ye Olde Nags Head Hotel has a 4.4 out of 5 star rating on Google, according to more than 1,400 reviews.