Sprinkles Gelato Bounces Back from Cockroach Scandal with Top Hygiene Score
Sprinkles Gelato on Commercial Road faced a horror hygiene report last year. Inspectors found “significant cockroach activity” where food was prepared, handled, and stored. The scandal saw the store’s parent company, Sprinkles Gelato Franchise Ltd, hit with a £5,000 fine and ordered to pay £100 compensation to a diner served a live cockroach.
From One Star to Five: The Comeback Story
After the shocking revelations, Sprinkles’ hygiene rating plummeted to a disgraceful one star in August. This came at a bad time, just as the ice cream parlour aimed to recover from the pandemic slump. The terrible rating also forced the parlour off one of the UK’s top food delivery platforms, crippling nearly half their business.
But fast forward to November, and Sprinkles has cleaned up its act in a big way — earning a sparkling five-star hygiene rating, the highest possible.
New Management, Fresh Training, and Customer Praise
Assistant manager Monika Kraszewska, 28, who has been with the branch over three years, said, “It was really hard for us, especially me and the other manager. We said, ‘we’re going to make it work’ – and we have.”
Monika added the team now welcomes plenty of loyal customers who “haven’t been put off.” The business splits roughly 60% in-store sales and 40% deliveries, so the hygiene overhaul was vital.
Following the fine, Sprinkles made major changes. A new manager arrived, Monika was promoted to assistant manager, and staff underwent more rigorous training. A company spokeswoman confirmed, “It’s been a really tough few years. We put staff and managers through more courses to get everyone better educated moving forward. We are now more hands-on with the sites, and it’s working better.”
Sprinkles Gelato is proof that even the crunchiest cockroach crisis can be wiped clean — just in time for summer scoops.
