How did some of London’s poshest restaurants get a one-star hygiene rating? Two diners in the Raffles hotel are marked for ‘major improvement’ while sushi bar with set menu costing £310 per person is also berated for ‘food handling’

• Some of London’s poshest diners have racked up low scores in recent months 
• READ MORE: Italian restaurant in London refuses to serve carbonara

Some of London’s poshest restaurants – including one which features a set menu for £310 per person – have been marked for ‘necessary improvement’ in food hygiene.

Prestigious eateries, such as Paper Moon and Café Lapérouse, both of which have menus available at luxurious Whitehall hotel, Raffles, scored a one, meaning ‘major’ corrections are necessary.

The lowest possible result is a zero – and the highest is a five. 

Also coming with a ranking of only one, as of October, was Akira – located in the heart of bougie Kensington – where a lunch bento box could set one person back £40, and a three-course sushi Omakase costs £65.

‘Major improvement’ was flagged in the hygienic handling of food and management of food safety.

Elsewhere, The Araki, which was last year listed as one of the ‘most expensive restaurants in London’ by Elite Traveller , also has a score of two as of June this year. Pictured, staff at the restaurant in 2017

However, the ‘cleanliness and condition of facilities and building’ was generally satisfactory.

West London Brazilian restaurant Bossa, where dinner mains start at £28 and go up to £38, was also ranked at two in October.

There, the ‘hygienic handling of food including preparation, cooking, re-heating, cooling and storage’ needed improvement, but food safety management was ‘generally satisfactory and the cleanliness of facilities was ‘very good’.

A spokesperson told MailOnline: ‘We received an inspection during our initial opening stages and promptly addressed identified issues.

‘We are currently awaiting a re-inspection. It’s noteworthy that our lounge bar, Maroto, an extension of the restaurant, achieved a five-star rating a few weeks later, reflecting the substantial improvements made in line with EHO standards.’

Cafe Murano at St James Street got a similarly low score of two in September, as improvement was ‘necessary’ in hygienic food handling, but good safety management and building cleanliness was generally satisfactory.

The Italian eatery’s menu starts its ‘Secondi’ dishes at £25, and even offers a £90 Bistecca Fiorentina.

Even just some bruschetta at the diner will set you back £9. 

Prestigious eateries, such as Paper Moon and Café Lapérouse (pictured), both of which have menus available at luxurious Whitehall hotel, Raffles, scored a one, meaning ‘major’ corrections are necessary

This weekend, journalist and food critic Jay Rayner took to his Instagram to hit out at the ‘astonishing’ food rankings at Paper Moon (pictured) and Café Lapérouse

Elsewhere, The Araki, which was last year listed as one of the ‘most expensive restaurants in London’ by Elite Traveller, also has a score of two as of June this year.

However, the venue has told MailOnline that it has ‘made the amendments to what the local council requires for the handling of raw fish, which is not the way things would be handled in Japan’.

It’s known for its Sushi ‘Omakase’ Chef’s Set Menu, which costs a whopping £310 per person – and excludes the 15 per cent service charge, beverages and extra orders. 

It was the first Japanese restaurant in the United Kingdom to be awarded three stars in 2017 after previously winning two. 

Japanese chef Mitsuhiro Araki opened the sushi bar in 2014 after closing his three-starred restaurant in Tokyo.

In 2020 the restaurant lost all its stars after chef Araki left. Currently, his legacy is proceeded by his ‘right-hand man’ Marty Lau.

Also coming with a ranking of only one, as of October, was Akira – located in the heart of bougie Kensington – where a lunch bento box could set one person back £40, and a three-course sushi Omakase costs £65

West London Brazilian restaurant Bossa, where dinner mains start at £28 and go up to £38, was also ranked at two in October

Cafe Murano at St James Street got a similarly low score of two in September, as improvement was ‘necessary’ in hygienic food handling, but good safety management and building cleanliness was generally satisfactory

The Araki’s ‘cleanliness and condition of facilities and building’ were ‘good’ – and ‘management of food safety’ was ‘generally satisfactory’ – but improvement was ‘necessary’ in ‘hygienic handling of food including preparation, cooking, re-heating, cooling and storage’.

This weekend, journalist and food critic Jay Rayner took to his Instagram to hit out at the ‘astonishing’ food rankings at Paper Moon and Café Lapérouse.

 ‘A reader got in touch directing me to the Food Standards Agency hygiene rating for @cafelaperouse.london. It’s a 1 out of 5, from an inspection in early November. That means “major improvement necessary”,’ he penned.

‘Which is astonishing for a business charging this much located inside a hotel like @raffleslondon.theowo.’

In a second post, he added: ‘Turns out another restaurant inside the @raffleslondon.theowo has had a 1/5 hygiene rating from the @foodgov.

‘This time it’s the “legendary Milanese” Italian restaurant @papermoonlondon… the main issue this time was hygienic food handling or, one assumes, the lack of it.

‘Have checked and it doesn’t seem the other restaurants inside the hotel have been inspected yet (or if they have, no rating has been released).’

MailOnline has reached out to the Paper Moon, Cafe Laperouse, Akira, Bossa, Cafe Murano at St James and The Araki – as well as Raffles – for comment.

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