Mr Kin Leong, owner of Kerana Mu, 81 Dedworth Road, was given the fine when he pleaded guilty at Maidenhead magistrates court on Friday October 10 to one charge of placing unsafe food on the market and nine related to the hygiene, practices and operation of the premises.

Mr Leong was fined £2,000 for the unsafe food offence and £500 for each of the hygiene offences, and was also ordered to pay council costs of £1,500.

Magistrates said they had taken into account that the complainant and her partner had suffered and added that the consequences could have been more serious if the people affected had been vulnerable.

In August last year, following a report from a customer, the restaurant was visited by council food safety officers and subsequently closed under an emergency prohibition order after they found serious contraventions of food safety law including mouldy food, a dirty and cluttered kitchen, accumulated filth in fridges, on work surfaces and floors, cooked ducks being prepared in a dirty, open yard, cigarette ends in the outside kitchen and storage areas and rotten meat covered in flies.

Analysis showed hazardous levels of bacteria – on food samples including pork ribs, butterfly prawns and chicken, on chopping boards, cleaning materials and dishcloths – with the potential to cause illness including Listeria monocytogenes, Escherichia coli and Staphylococcus aureus.

Mr Leong carried out work on the premises in August last year and the emergency prohibition order was lifted the following month. A further full inspection in December showed that food safety standards are now satisfactory.

Cllr Colin Rayner, lead member for environment, said: “This prosecution is a warning to those restaurant owners who play fast and loose with hygiene regulations that the council will not hesitate to take action against them.

“Fortunately in this case there were no lasting effects. Our officers carry out regular inspections but we would also like to encourage the public to help by contacting our environmental health team if they have concerns about any food outlet to help prevent a similar – or even worse – situation happening in the future.”