A restaurant has been slapped with a zero-star hygiene rating after inspectors found a rotting rodent and rat droppings inside the building.

Jay’s Soul Food opened in the former Old Prince of Wales pub in Ashford town centre in 2022, offering a variety of Afro-Caribbean and West African cuisine.

But the New Street site has now been hit with the lowest possible hygiene score after Ashford Borough Council (ABC) discovered the decomposing rodent in the basement.

An environmental health inspector also found rat activity in the kitchen, evidenced by smear marks on the wall below a hole and droppings found on gloves in a shelving unit and on the floor.

Members of staff were said to be unaware of pest activity, with the ABC official noting how this created a risk of cross and direct contamina

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