THEY HAVE SOME NERVE COMPLAINING AFTER THIS FOOD SCANDAL! The furious Muslim owners of two Peterborough restaurants which were temporarily shut following a cockroach infestation have hit out at the ‘unfair’ decision by the city council. TheNDP reported last week that Ali’s Fried Chicken (AFC) and Ali’s Balti House, which are based next to each other in Bourges Boulevard, had been closed after council officers discovered cockroaches at both venues during an inspection on October 16 - with insects found on pieces of food. Both restaurants were closed for over a week but reopened on Tuesday after being awarded hygiene certificates from the council following extensive cleaning. But speaking to the PT, Shazad Ali, the owner of Ali’s Balti House, said he felt the decision to close the venues was unfair and claimed the council should have worked more closely with his firm to fix the problem quickly. Mr Ali said: “Both restaurants feel the council has been heavy-handed with us. They should have worked with us more closely. Once we discovered the problem we set about working to fix it. By forcing us to close meant we lost a lot of trade. We will be making a complaint.” But council chiefs said they had worked closely with both restaurants and stressed that the closure was necessary due to health risks. A council spokesperson said: “Cockroaches present a risk to human health because they carry pathogenic bacteria. They foul the environment with faeces, regurgitated food and they taint materials with their smell. These bacteria can cause food poisoning with symptoms including diarrhoea, vomiting and fever. “This presented an imminent risk to health because contaminated food could be eaten by consumers which could make them ill. “We have worked with the business to ensure controls are in place and we will continue to do so to ensure standards are maintained”.
Posted on: Sun, 03 Nov 2013 19:25:19 +0000