Will’s Café and Grill in Crowborough has been told it must make “major improvements” to its food safety standards.
The cafe in the Broadway has been given a one-star food hygiene rating, the second lowest, following an inspection by environmental health officers on June 4, 2025.
The owners of the family-run business told the Crowborough News this week they only took over the café in February and had been working hard to improve it – investing in new equipment, new bins, and repairing areas highlighted by the inspector.
The manager, Mo Nazeer, insisted the inspection rating was not about food – it had followed overloaded bins, broken steps, used oil that hadn’t been collected, and a broken microwave. All had been sorted.
He was confident the inspection rating would now increase. “She was right, and I’m not fighting it. But we have worked hard and are doing our best to improve. I believe we are much improved. We may not get a five next time, but it will be a four.”
According to the Wealden District Council website the district has almost 1,500 outlets that are subject to food hygiene inspections. At April 2025 only two had the one-star rating. There were no zero star ratings, and most, 970, have the top five-star “very good” assessment.
Will’s Café rating means that “major improvement” is required in terms of the restaurant’s food hygiene.
The inspection result will come as a surprise to the seven reviewers on Trip Advisor who all rated the café either “excellent” or “good”. This gives the café an average Trip Advisor score of 4.6. Some of the positive comments included: “Delicious, nicely presented. Lovely friendly staff – felt very welcome” and “I cannot speak more highly of this fantastic café restaurant. Visited, for the first time, with family after various word of mouth recommendations and we were not disappointed.”
The cafe and grill, which serves breakfasts, and burgers, but also coffees, cakes, and pastries was judged on three categories: hygienic handling of food, cleanliness and condition of facilities, and management of food safety.
These assessments covered how food is prepared, cooked, reheated, cooled, and stored, as well as the cleanliness of the premises, and the management systems in place to ensure food is safe to eat.
The inspection was carried out by food safety officers at Wealden District Council and the results are published by the Food Standards Agency. The food safety officer found the restaurant needed improvement in all three categories.
Improvements are necessary in hygienic food handling – how the cafe handles food including preparation, cooking, re-heating, cooling and storage – and also in the cleanliness and condition of the building.
But the most serious concerns were raised about the management of food safety. This includes making sure there are checks in place to ensure that food sold or served is safe to eat, evidence that staff know about food safety, and that the food safety officer has confidence that standards will be maintained in future. The café has been told this needs “major improvement”.
The Food Standards Agency says businesses which are given low ratings must make urgent or major improvements to hygiene standards and that the district council has several enforcement options available as well as giving advice and guidance to make sure these improvements are made.
According to the Wealden District Council website all food businesses are routinely and regularly inspected, without appointments, and a food hygiene rating awarded on the standards seen at that time. The Food Hygiene Rating System (FHRS) provides information to the public about the hygiene standards so they can make a choice about where they eat. All ratings are published on the Food Standards Agency website.
Door stickers are provided, but there is currently no requirement to display these. In addition to routine inspections, visits are undertaken because of complaints by members of the public either concerning unsatisfactory premises.
The council says: “Food businesses scoring 0-2 will receive more attention and support to continue to raise standards. This means that inspectors will make compliance checks within three months of the initial inspection. If significant improvements have not been made officers will take enforcement action.”
For details of the FSA inspection visit: https://ratings.food.gov.uk/business/1738919/wills-cafe-and-grill-crowborough