A CRISIS-HIT restaurant, which earlier this week saw its owner lose its licence, has been handed a one-star food hygiene rating.

The Akbar Dynasty at Sadberge, near Darlington, was told "major improvements" were necessary in a most recent food hygiene inspection last month.

The results of the inspection, which took place on March 18, 2021, found that the venue needed to make improvements across the majority of categories.

It comes as the director of the Bengali restaurant, was stripped of his licence this week after the businesses was found "paying" leftover food to illegal workers.

Read more: Akbar Dynasty - Darlington restaurant owner's licence revoked

Darlington Borough Council's licensing committee heard a raft of concerns had been raised at the venue, located off the A66.

It heard that during raids desperate, fleeing illegal workers stripped off their kitchen attire, hid in toilets and posed as customers during a recent immigration raid.

The Northern Echo: Akbar Dynasty on the A66.

It also heard there had been no evidence to suggest the director had made any checks on the illegal workers. 

But results for food hygiene inspections, carried out across March, have recently been published naming Akbar Dynasty among those with the worst scores in the region.

In the hygienic food handling category, which covers handling of food including preparation, cooking and storage, inspectors found this to be "generally satisfactory."

But in the cleanliness and condition of facilities and building, inspectors found "improvement necessary."

And under the management of food safety, which includes ensuring that food is safe to eat and staff are aware on safety, inspectors deemed "major improvement necessary."

According to previous results, the restaurant received a four-star food hygiene rating in an inspection in February 2019.

The Northern Echo has requested a full copy of the report