The Mango restaurant was fined over £16,000 by Tower Hamlets Council

A Brick Lane restaurant has been fined more than £16,000 after food inspectors discovered a kitchen infested with mice and cockroaches.

The case against Mangos, a curry house at 90 Brick Lane, following an inspection by Environmental Health Commercial Officers from Tower Hamlets Council last autumn.

No representatives of  the company behind the restaurant, Mango Brick Lane Ltd, attended the hearing at Thames Magistrates Court where they were found guilty in their absence.

During the October visit officers discovered mice droppings in food preparation areas, including on chopping boards, plates and a sink.

Cockroaches were also found in the kitchen, and inside a container where spices were stored.

The restaurant was immediately closed following the inspection, and cleaning and pest control works were carried out, said Tower Hamlets Counci.

The council said that the subsequent investigation and prosecution had established that  Mango Brick Lane had failed to keep the premises clean, control pests, or keep food safe from contamination.

Staff had not been adequately trained, and the company had failed to adequately manage food safety risks.

The Court issued the maximum fine possible on three of the seven offences presented

Councillor Shahed Ali, Tower Hamlets Council Lead Member for the Environment, said: “We’ve got some fantastic restaurants in Tower Hamlets and we’re making sure that they’re clean and safe to eat in.”

“We want residents and visitors to feel confident and enjoy the experience of eating out in the borough, and that’s why we’re cracking down on unhygienic premises.”

Staff at the restaurant, which was open for business in Brick Lane this week,  denied that it had ever closed. A spokesman for the management company, Mango Brick Lane, could not be contacted for comment.