Bazaar restaurant, Captain Cook Square(Image: Daniel Hodgson)

A 'luxury' Middlesbrough restaurant has been given a zero food hygiene rating - as bosses say improvements have been made since. Bazaar Restaurant in Captain Cook Square, Middlesbrough, says “all required improvements” have been completed after the poor scoring by inspectors on May 5.

The establishment, listed as Bazaar Foodhall Limited on the Food Standards Agency’s (FSA) website, was told that it needed to improve its hygienic food handling, while the management of food safety and the cleanliness/condition of facilities and the building were both described as requiring “major improvement”.

Bazaar opened to much fanfare two years ago and was dubbed the "Charlie and The Chocolate Factory for grown ups". At the time bosses said it boasted an indoor Italian copper pizza oven, which "holds the record for being the largest in Europe" and had hopes to obtain a Michelin star.

Its website states it is open from Tuesdays to Sundays, offering a la carte, Sunday lunch, children's menu, bottomless brunches, tapas, and a graduation menu. Its Instagram page describes it as "luxury North East dining".

A spokesperson for the restaurant said they were “deeply disappointed” by the outcome of May’s inspection, adding: “Following that visit, we took the immediate and voluntary decision to close our premises to address all identified issues thoroughly and without compromise.

“Since then, we have worked very closely with environmental health officers, completely overhauling our hygiene protocols and making significant investments in both our facilities and staff training."

The eaterie representative said environmental health officers have since re-inspected the premises and "officially verified that all required improvements have been made to their complete satisfaction".

They added: “We are now open as normal, operating to the highest standards, and have already submitted a formal application for an expedited food hygiene re-rating inspection to reflect these improved standards, which we look forward to sharing with our customers soon.”

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