Restaurant owner ordered to pay thousands over cockroach infestation
Kieran Molloy, Local Democracy Reporter
A restaurant owner and his company have been ordered to pay over £3,500 after trading standards officers found he was trading while there was an active cockroach infestation on the premises.
On September 2, Motiur Rahman, 51, from Cardiff, who owned Spice Kitchen Ltd, pleaded guilty at Cardiff Magistrates’ Court to offences under food hygiene legislation following investigations by Shared Regulatory Services (SRS).
SRS provides environmental health, trading standards and licensing enforcement across Cardiff, Bridgend and the Vale of Glamorgan.
In October 2024, environmental health officers first visited the premises, then trading as Delhi Cuisine, after a tip-off from a member of the public.
During the visit, offices discovered that the business had been open and trading while an active cockroach infestation was occurring in the restaurant.
The premises closed voluntarily and remained closed until the issues were resolved, until it later reopened under the trading name Grand Sylhet – operated by Spice Kitchen Ltd.
During a January 2025 inspection, officers found that the business was trading without hot water.
They also found that high-risk food handling activities involving both raw and ready-to-eat was taking place despite there being no safe means of washing hands or equipment.
Again, the premises voluntarily closed and remained closed until hot water was restored.
Rahman was fined £240, ordered to pay costs of £200, with a victim surcharge of £96.
Spice Kitchen Ltd was fined £2,000, ordered to pay £200 in costs with a victim surcharge of £800.
Cllr Ed Stubbs, the cabinet member with responsibilities for SRS at Cardiff Council, said: “ “Food businesses have a legal responsibility to ensure appropriate food hygiene standards are maintained and ensure food is prepared in a safe environment.
“The conditions identified during these inspections presented unacceptable risks and required immediate action to protect public health.
“We will continue to take robust enforcement action where serious food safety breaches are found and will not hesitate to prosecute businesses that fail to comply with food hygiene legislation.”
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