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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

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Original poster

to keep quiet about this or should I tip her off?

123 replies

SecondTimeIsBetter · 02/10/2016 16:12

Work colleague / friend is getting married on the the weekend, big do costing a fortune at a popular high end venue. I've just found out via a family member that the venue was inspected by environmental health last week and scored 0 - urgent action required. Head chef has apparently already gone, possibly sacked. The score has not yet been published on the food standards website but due to the nature of the venue there is no doubt it will be big news when the story breaks as they host a national team
I don't want to say anything but I am worried that if the story breaks a day or two before the wedding then it's going to be worse than if she found out now and had time to talk to the venue and seek reassurance.
On the other hand it could take longer than a week for the news to break by which time she will be married and away on her honeymoon!
Does anyone have any experience of how long it takes for the score to be published after the date of inspection?

OP posts:

Sara107 · 03/10/2016 20:36

I would be just as worried about the loss of the chef as about the hygiene. They will likely be making a huge effort to clean things up and put better systems in place, but the food can really go downhill without the chef. I think if I were your friend I would like to know so I could arrange to go to the venue and have a detailed discussion about what the problems were and what they are doing to sort them out, including who they are putting in charge of the food preparation. Of course it will be upsetting but not half as bad as turning up on the day with 150 guests to find the kitchens closed or something!

JaniceBattersby · 03/10/2016 20:43

It really is big news, strangely. People love this kind of story. Three of our top ten stories for this year are food ratings stories. It's especially big news of the venue is either posh, or a takeaway where everyone goes after chucking out time at the local nightclub.

mellowfartfulness · 03/10/2016 20:47

I live near Celtic Manor (not that I've any major reason for believing it's the venue OP is talking about) and can confirm that people round here would be absolutely fucking agog if it got a zero hygiene rating.

I don't get all the slagging against the OP at all. I think it's perfectly reasonable to consider warning her friend so she can seek reassurance from the venue - and then spread that reassurance among the guests as and when they notice the hygiene sticker, which, yes, some people do look at and will no doubt tell everyone else.

hoddtastic · 03/10/2016 20:52

i totally don't understand this obsession with hygiene ratings, the only people i know who've ever ruled out anything on those grounds are massive bellends.

Do you really like your colleague? It reads to me like you quite want to piss on her chips (along with the rats, pissing on her dauphinoise potatoes...)

it's not your news, not your circus, not your monkeys. How clean is your own kitchen out of interest? :D

TwatbadgingCuntfuckery · 03/10/2016 20:52

I agree with PPs. In order to operate no doubt the company that runs the catering will have paid for professional cleaners to come in and deep clean it over 2 days.

That cost will be much much smaller than it being shut for a week or so.

BeachysSandyFlipFlops · 03/10/2016 20:54

Makes me think of Fawlty Towers and Manuel's rat

RabbitsNap01 · 03/10/2016 20:58

Of course it's big news and hugely damaging - who will push the boat out to book a wedding at a place half the guests will be worrying about catching food poisoning at once the news is out?

Kewcumber · 03/10/2016 21:07

Our local press are all over zero hygiene ratings - the last one was spread all over the front page of local (well read) newspaper and spread like wildfire across facebook. And that was a local pizza place - not sure why so many are convinced that press would only be interested in massive famous venues

user1473609390 · 03/10/2016 21:08

It's not that bad - otherwise EHOs would have shut it down until they are satisfied improvements have been made.

EHOs are the only group of professionals who can shut down a food premise. Coincidentally, there are thousands of food premises that have never been inspected by the local council. Furthermore, when inspected some can be really bad with mice or pigeon droppings; cross-contamination; appalling food preparations and dirt on tiles, floors and surfaces caked with dirt etc but these business places remain open!!!

Puzzledandpissedoff · 03/10/2016 21:11

Genuinely surprised at the widespread trust that the place will be taking urgent action - surely it's known that the rating scheme is run by local authorities, whose commitment to seeing anything done urgently isn't always a given?

Also a zero rating suggests rather more than a bit of grease on the walls; at the very least there may be improper food handling, inadequate training, poor management and much else - a bit like a place local to me in fact, which got a zero two years ago, still trades and is still utterly filthy

Hard to understand why OP's had such a pasting on here, but I hope her conversation with the bride went okay

SeasonalVag · 03/10/2016 22:26

Talk to the parents of anybody. Don't lay this on her at this late stage.
I'd be tempted to keep my mouth shut.

greatgazza · 03/10/2016 23:53

Er no it doesn't. Hosting a national team could mean where they stay? It made me think of somewhere totally different to a stadium. How many weddings do you know that happen at Wembley or Twickenham? Agree with some others that perhaps you should pass the info on to the bride's family and let them make the decision

Essexgirlupnorth · 03/10/2016 23:54

If it's in Wales and has links to rugby then I think I know which hotel it is as my sister got married there.
There isn't much she can do so close but I hope the venue has been honest with her but I'm not sure I would tell her unless I was a very close friend.

Lemonlady22 · 04/10/2016 00:45

anything to do with the chef thinking mouse droppings were spices.....its in the news this morning!

CwtchesAndCuddles · 04/10/2016 08:21

Do you have a link for that?

Original poster

SecondTimeIsBetter · 04/10/2016 08:33

Bride knows and has been to visit venue who are bending over backwards to reassure her, there is a new operations manager in post who seems to be saying all the right things. She has also spoken to EH.
She is upset but determined not to let it spoil the wedding.

Not Celtic Manor.

OP posts:

MackerelOfFact · 04/10/2016 08:47

To all those saying that people don't care about food hygiene ratings, I have declined invitations to visit Jamie Oliver's Barbecoa and Heston's Fat Duck restaurants based on stories I've read about their poor food hygiene ratings. I don't deliberately seek out these stories, but they do stick. It does rather ruin the dining experience when you're wondering which mouthful is going to give you the rating shits!

Jedimum1 · 04/10/2016 10:08

Can the bride at this point get wedding insurance, in case the place suddenly closes if it doesn't pass that second inspection? I think I'd tell her so that she can do another food test, as the chef has changed, and ask for a discount. As others said, this kind of venue has likely corrected everything and is now spotless, but if I were the bride, I rather have the choice to do something about it. I would not be concerned about the food poisoning after the rating, they are surely going the extra mile. I would aim the chat towards ensuring they have a decent chef, that the menu can be cooked to similar standards, getting alternatives and/or discounts if necessary. Why would you pay top prices when the famed chef is not there anymore? How would you know the quality of the cooking is the same? I wouldn't make it about potential good poisoning because I don't really think that's a possibility anymore.

fittedcupboard · 04/10/2016 10:10

Can the bride at this point get wedding insurance, doubt she'd get it if the inspection is public knowledge

Jedimum1 · 04/10/2016 10:19

Sorry, I've just seen you told her. Well done, in my opinion you showed concern. I don't understand this "keeping mouth shut to avoid upset" when clearly things could still be done and reassurances found.

I think all these people telling OP to be quiet or suggesting she's trying to upset the bride are out of order. If we were talking about a guy's stag do and the alcohol in the venue being counterfeit, nobody would be suggesting silence as to not upset the groom. What's with this idea of brides not being able to manage or getting upset to the point of ruining a wedding? Plenty of women out there who are resourceful and try to find solutions or reassurances under pressure, as the bride seems to be in here.

Jedimum1 · 04/10/2016 10:23

Sorry, I have generalised above, when I'm criticising exactly that. I change the statement to "some people" complaining about the OP, not all, not most.

Fittedcupboard, worth a try though? Maybe she might already have some

Puzzledandpissedoff · 04/10/2016 12:24

To be fair, OP didn't say she'd told the bride - she said the bride knows, which could have come from any number of sources

Anyway I'm glad she's been able to get at least some reassurance ...

UnderCoverGuvnor · 30/10/2016 11:40

I'm guessing this was the venue!!

ratings.food.gov.uk/business/en-GB/107163/Vale-Resort-Hensol

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