Nine eateries at Westfield Miranda have been fined since August last year for failing to comply with food hygiene requirements.
The heftiest penalty, of $15,000, was handed out in Sutherland Local Court last week to the Dainty Hospitality Group, which operates the Dainty Dumpling House cafe.
Sutherland Shire Council took action after issuing the company with numerous warnings and directions over three years.
One council inspection followed a complaint that a foodborne illness allegedly originated from the cafe.
The company was convicted of two offences of failing to comply with the food standards code on September 28, 2017.
The council alleged a number of cockroaches were found on the underside of the food preparation area and the surface around the wash basin had deteriorated and was unable to be effectively cleaned.
The company was convicted and fined $7000 plus $500 costs for each offence.
Dainty Hospitality Group director Marko Li told the Leader the group had no previous offences, and problems at the Miranda cafe stemmed from defective building work, which was the subject of ongoing legal action.
The company later issued a statement (see below) saying the latest council inspection in April confirmed the issues had been rectified and customers could “can dine at our Westfield Miranda outlet with confidence.”
The NSW Food Authority’s register of penalty notices – commonly known as the “name and shame” file – records eight other food business in Westfield Miranda have been issued with fines for food safety failures by the council since August last year.
One of the businesses was fined for three alleged offences and another for two.
The offences, all resulting in fines of $880, included:
- Bannos Brownies: Fail to maintain easily accessible hand washing facilities on the food premises – previous warning given
- Ken’s Bento: Fail to display potentially hazardous food under temperature control – previous warnings given.
- Lok Lok Dumpling Bar: Fail to take all practicable measures to eradicate and prevent the harbourage of pests - previous warnings given.
- Luxe Kitchen Miranda: Fail to display potentially hazardous food under temperature control – previous warnings given
- Sourdough Bakery: Fail to maintain premises, fixtures, fittings, and equipment in a good state of repair and working order having regard to their use – previous warnings given.
- Sourdough Bakery: Fail to ensure the design and construction of the food premises is appropriate for the activities for which the premises are used - previous warnings given.
- Subway: Fail to maintain all fixtures, fittings and equipment to the required standard of cleanliness – previous warning given.
- The Foodie: Fail to store potentially hazardous food under temperature control – previous warnings given.
- The Foodie: Fail to take all practicable measures to eradicate and prevent the harbourage of pests.
- The Foodie: Fail to take all practicable measures to eradicate and prevent the harbourage of pests.
- The Shed Cafe: Fail to display potentially hazardous food under temperature control - previous warnings given.
A spokeswoman for the Scentre Group, which manages the centre, said, “Westfield Miranda has a rigorous pest control program as part of its normal operations”.
“The success of this program also depends on the retailers adhering to their own pest control obligations," she said.
“From time to time, the pest control and inspection schedule is adjusted as needed.
“The food safety and hygiene standards of food operators in NSW are regulated by the Food Authority of NSW via local councils – in this instance the Sutherland Shire Council, who conduct inspections of food and beverage operators independently of Westfield Miranda centre management.
“Those inspections and their outcome are not necessarily brought to the attention of Westfield Miranda by the food authority, none the least due to privacy concerns, however our customer experience team will always liaise directly with a food operator on becoming aware of any food safety and hygiene concerns and work together to adjust the pest control program if necessary.”
Sutherland Shire Council released details of the penalty imposed on Dainty Hospitality Group, but would not name the business – a spokeswoman said this was “standard council policy”.
The spokeswoman said the business had been previously warned, and was issued two penalty notices by the council, each for $880, but chose to defend the matters in court.
”Council’s environmental health officers conduct more than 1700 inspections of retail food businesses each year to ensure the safety and compliance of these businesses,” she said.
The brief of evidence given to the court at the Dainty Hospitality Group hearing said a council inspector had visited the premises several times since December, 2014.
The inspector had found ongoing issues, including a gap between the food preparation area and a wall not being sealed to prevent pests, a hand washing basin being used for other purposes, paper towel not being provided for staff, unclean surfaces and food not being stored in a manner to prevent cross contamination.
A statement issued by Dainty Dumplings said some media reports were inaccurate.
The company claimed the fines “did not relate to kitchen hygiene, but were instead linked to a long-running dispute with a building firm over building defects that were not rectified despite the builder’s obligation to do so”
The statement said the most recent council inspection on April 17 “confirmed that the issues that were the subject of the fine had been rectified to their satisfaction”.
“Dainty Dumplings takes pride in our reputation for tasty, well-prepared Chinese food,” the statement said.
“We have complied at all times with the requirements of the NSW Food Safety Authority and are free of any breach notices.
“Our customers can be reassured that they can dine at our Westfield Miranda outlet with confidence.”
