The grim findings landed the restaurant with a zero food hygiene rating
Mouse droppings found in Amara Wallasey by Wirral Council food hygiene inspectors(Image: Copyright Unknown)
A Merseyside Turkish restaurant was given a zero food hygiene rating after “slime”, “pink feta”, mouldy olives, and mouse droppings were found. Photos taken by council food hygiene inspectors revealed the stomach-churning situation inside.
Amara, a family-run Turkish BBQ restaurant in Wallasey Village, was inspected by Wirral Council in October 2025. The business was told urgent improvement was necessary in all areas and given the worst possible rating.
Through a Freedom of Information request, the ECHO can reveal the grim findings that led to the damning rating. Because of the conditions found, the business was served with a voluntary prohibition notice “due to the discovery of mouse activity in the kitchen” and given the worst scores in all three inspection areas.
In an October 6 report, Wirral Council environmental health inspectors said: “There was evidence of mice activity in the kitchen, with mice droppings seen at floor level behind and under the chest freezer and at the bottom of the stairs in the kitchen.
“Droppings were also found on the shelf unit in the kitchen next to take away food packaging and food items and droppings were found over the plastic food bags that had been stored loose down the side of the freezer. Your staff were not aware of the activity and were also not aware if you had sought the advice of a competent pest control contractor.”
Mouldy olives found by inspectors(Image: Copyright Unknown)
Inspectors said they could find no evidence of any pest control on site including bait boxes and monitoring devices. The business was told it needed to have procedures in place to protect food from contamination and control pests.
The report said: “There were food items and open take away food packaging on the shelves [where] droppings were found and the plastic food bags stored down the side of the freezer had mouse droppings both under and on them, which your staff indicated were used for food storage.”
Hummus was found to be stored incorrectly and several condiments had no indication of how long they had been opened. A container of olives and sun-dried tomatoes “was mouldy” and found to be kept at a too-warm temperature.
Slime found on the base of the kitchen fridge(Image: Copyright Unknown)
A container of prepared garnish “had mould spores evidence on the lid and some of the food inside such as the sliced tomato”. The restaurant was told the handling of this food was “not acceptable”.
A tub of feta cheese “had gone pink and smelt rancid” while four prawns were placed on a “greasy and dirty” dish to defrost. Food in the freezer had “no indication of when they had been frozen and where they came from”.
Waste bins under the kitchen counter did not have a lid and concerns were raised about the storage of rice. The area behind the charcoal grill was “filthy with dirty, general grease, grime, and food debris” while the kitchen walls were dirty with dust, food debris, and grease.
Several other areas were also dirty while the wall to the side of the sink was “greasy and tacky to touch”. The kitchen fridge was found to be “dirty with water, slime, mould and food debris found on the inside surfaces and door”.
The report also raised a number of health and safety concerns, adding: “During the inspection the door to the Falcon oven was not closing properly and was wedged shut with a wooden stool with a woven seat cover which was covered with grease. This is a fire hazard.”
Amara has been approached for comment.