CUSTOMERS have been reacting on social media after the food hygiene rating for the McDonald's in Chirk dropped from five to two.

Previous inspections in 2020, 2019, and 2018 gave the fast food outlet on the Halton roundabout the top rating of five out of five, which is classed as "very good".

The latest inspection carried out by the Food Standards Agency on August 6 and published on the Wrexham Council website shows the rating as two out of five. This means "improvement is necessary".

The ratings for hygienic food handling and management of food safety were both given "good" ratings.

Hygienic handling of food includes preparation, cooking, re-heating, cooling and storage.

Management of food safety means "system or checks in place to ensure that food sold or served is safe to eat, evidence that staff know about food safety, and the food safety officer has confidence that standards will be maintained in future".

It was cleanliness and condition of facilities and building that was given a lower rating, saying "improvement necessary".

This category covers: "Cleanliness and condition of facilities and building (including having appropriate layout, ventilation, hand washing facilities and pest control) to enable good food hygiene."

Wrexham Council says: "During inspections, the officer checks how well the business is meeting the law by looking at all of the following factors:

  • How hygienically the food is handled - how it is prepared, cooked, re-heated, cooled and stored.
  • The condition of the structure of the buildings - the cleanliness, layout, lighting, ventilation and other facilities.
  • How the business manages and records what it does to make sure food is safe.
  • Food safety training."

The restaurant is very popular, with queues often backing on to the road outside.

Today, customers were tagging each other on social media to share the rating.

Two weeks ago, there were concerns on social media when the Chirk McDonald's was closed temporarily.

This was thought to be due to supply issues affecting McDonald's outlets and other food businesses in recent months.