A popular bar and restaurant has been handed a low ranking by the Food Standards Agency.

The Rovers Tye, in Ipswich Road, Colchester, was given two stars out of five following an inspection which took place last month.

System or checks in place to ensure that food sold or served is safe to eat were found to be generally satisfactory and the level of hygiene when handling food was deemed to be good.

But with no running hot water on the day the inspection took place, added to the fact that the cleanliness and condition of the facilities required improvement, the pub was consequently given only a two-star ranking.

Although the issue of hot water has since been rectified, The Rovers Tye has requested a reinspection so it can be re-rated by the Food Standards Agency.

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Run by the pub chain Greene King, The Rovers Tye has been a well-known pub in Highwoods for decades and although a spokesman from Greene King admitted the outcome of March’s inspection was disappointing, he said the lack of hot water was a one-off occurrence.

He said: “We work extremely hard to maintain high standards of hygiene and cleanliness in our pub and are disappointed by this isolated lapse relating to hot water.

“This has now been fixed and we are requesting a reinspection so we can return to our previous high rating as soon as possible.

“We’d like to reassure our customers that customer safety is our absolute priority and this same inspection found good standards of hygienic food handling, including preparation and cooking.”

Seven restaurants and bars in Colchester have been scored a full five stars by the Food Standards Agency so far this year.

Subway, The Peldon Rose Inn, and Sip and Tuck were among the venues to have been awarded top marks following FSA inspections.

The Food Standards Agency, which is an independent government department, was established in 2000 to minimise the number of illnesses caused by poor practice.