Sevenoaks food hygiene: September's 27 ratings all 5s

Every food hygiene rating from a September inspection in the Sevenoaks district published so far is a 5, the top mark. There are 27 of them, according to the Food Standards Agency register. (Food Standards Agency, food hygiene rating data API, Sevenoaks authority)

They include a castle tearoom at Eynsford, a pub and an Indian restaurant in Dunton Green, and the kitchens at three schools: Hever, Radnor House and The Granville.

August’s full list has now settled, too, and it is less tidy. When we reported August’s ratings on 2 September, eight had been published, all 5s. The register now holds 20 August ratings, and seven of them are below 5.

Why the early figures are always 5s

A business given less than 5 has 21 days to appeal before the rating is published. Top scores therefore appear almost straight away, and lower ones follow weeks later. (Food Standards Agency, Food Hygiene Rating Scheme guidance for businesses)

So September’s clean sheet is real, but it is not yet the whole month. Any lower scores from late-September inspections would still be inside their appeal window.

September’s 5s

All from the FSA register for the Sevenoaks authority, pulled on 6 October 2026:

Six more 5s went to home-based caterers and small sellers, which the register lists by postcode area only: Big Daddys Pizza (DA3), Grow Moses (TN13), Lesley Bread (TN15), La Petite Patisserie (TN11), Capsule Sizes (DA4) and Field Stone Farm (TN8).

Each rating is built from three scores: food handling, the condition of the premises, and how food safety is managed. Several September 5s scored the best possible on all three. They include Lullingstone Castle Tearoom, Willow And Bean, the Subway in Swanley Centre, Olleco and Field Stone Farm. (FSA register, Lullingstone Castle Tearoom; FSA register, Willow And Bean)

August’s late-published ratings

Twelve more August ratings have appeared since our last report. Five more were 5s. These are the seven below the top mark, with the inspector’s three component scores as the register records them:

• Karo, Market Square, Westerham: rated 0 on 5 August, which we reported on 21 September.
• Westley’s Chicken, The Row, New Ash Green: rated 2 on 17 August. Food handling was recorded as “improvement necessary”; the premises and management were each “generally satisfactory”. (FSA register, Westley’s Chicken)
• Giacomos, Morleys Road, Sevenoaks Weald: rated 3 on 12 August, “generally satisfactory” in all three areas. (FSA register, Giacomos)
• Master Grill, White Hart Parade, London Road, Riverhead: rated 3 on 18 August, “generally satisfactory” in all three areas. (FSA register, Master Grill)
• The Crown, High Street, Shoreham: rated 3 on 25 August, “generally satisfactory” in all three areas. (FSA register, The Crown)
• New Ash Green Pavilion, the sports pavilion at Punch Croft: rated 4 on 4 August. (FSA register, New Ash Green Pavilion)
• Knockholt Village Stores, Main Road, Knockholt: rated 4 on 12 August. (FSA register, Knockholt Village Stores)

A 3 means “generally satisfactory”, and a 2 means “improvement necessary”. A rating records one inspection on one day. Every business can appeal within 21 days, publish a right to reply on the register, or ask for a re-visit once it has made improvements. (Food Standards Agency, FHRS guidance for businesses) None of the seven had a right to reply on the register when we checked.

The district as a whole

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The register holds 954 premises for the district. Of those, 873 carry a rating, 39 are awaiting their first inspection and 42 are exempt.

Among the rated premises:

• 698 hold a 5, up from 681 at the start of September
• 105 hold a 4
• 49 hold a 3
• 14 hold a 2
• 5 hold a 1
• 2 hold a 0, up from one; Karo is the addition

That puts 92 per cent of rated premises at 4 or better, the same share as a month ago. (Food Standards Agency, food hygiene rating data API, Sevenoaks authority)

What it means for you

Check the place and the date. Search the FSA register by name or postcode for the rating, the inspection date and the three component scores. A monthly list, ours included, stays provisional for weeks.

Businesses in England do not have to display their sticker, so an empty window tells you nothing. A place that has changed hands starts again with no rating until its first inspection.

Concerns about a food business in the district go to Sevenoaks District Council’s environmental health team. (Sevenoaks District Council, report food hygiene concerns)

Our business directory lists restaurants, cafes and takeaways by area, and we cover the district’s pubs and afternoon teas.

Sources

• Food Standards Agency, food hygiene rating data and open data
• Food Standards Agency, search food hygiene ratings
• FSA register entries linked above: Lullingstone Castle Tearoom, Willow And Bean, Westley’s Chicken, Giacomos, Master Grill, The Crown, New Ash Green Pavilion, Knockholt Village Stores
• Food Standards Agency, Food Hygiene Rating Scheme guidance for businesses
• Sevenoaks District Council, report food hygiene concerns about a food business

Image: The Row, New Ash Green by Chris Whippet, CC BY-SA 2.0, via Geograph. Chart by Sevenoaks Online.

Figures in this article were taken from the FSA ratings API for the Sevenoaks authority (local authority ID 255) on 6 October 2026.