5

The little cafe food hygiene rating

Restaurant/Cafe/Canteen · Colchester

The little cafe holds a 5, the highest food hygiene rating there is. At its last inspection the restaurant met every standard the inspector checked, with nothing needing attention.

The rating: 5 - Very good

The rating dates from 28 August 2024, 22 months ago. That is getting on for the longest gap councils usually leave, so the score may not reflect how the business is run today.

Address: 28A Military Road, Colchester, Essex, CO1 2AJ

How it compares in Colchester

That puts The little cafe among the 1,191 places in Colchester holding top marks, 89% of everywhere the council rates. A 5 is the norm here rather than the exception, so it is the rating to expect, not to be impressed by.

Every rated food business in Colchester
5 out of 5 1,191 89% ← The little cafe
4 out of 5 82 6%
3 out of 5 48 4%
2 out of 5 3 <1%
1 out of 5 9 1%
0 out of 5 2 <1%

A further 296 businesses in the area are awaiting inspection or exempt, so are not counted above.

What the inspector found

An inspection scores three things: how food is handled, the physical condition of the premises, and how much the inspector trusts management to keep standards up. At The little cafe none of the three raised a concern, the overall rating is only ever as strong as its weakest area, so a clean sweep is what produces a high score.

Food hygiene ratings nearby

The closest food businesses to The little cafe, nearest first, so you can see how it compares to its neighbours.

Business Distance Rating Inspected
BHWinnock Store Retailers - other 198 yards away 5 - Very good 15 October 2024
Aldi Supermarket Retailers - supermarkets/hypermarkets 371 yards away 5 - Very good 15 October 2024
Choice Foods Retailers - other 0.3 miles away 5 - Very good 8 December 2020
90 Minutes Restaurant & Lounge Restaurant/Cafe/Canteen 0.3 miles away 5 - Very good 30 September 2025
Cafe & Ice cream Restaurant/Cafe/Canteen 0.3 miles away 5 - Very good 4 August 2025
Aunties Kitchen Takeaway/sandwich shop 0.3 miles away 5 - Very good 22 July 2025
Buzz Bingo Restaurant/Cafe/Canteen 0.3 miles away 5 - Very good 3 December 2024
Aburi Japanese Restaurant Restaurant/Cafe/Canteen 0.3 miles away 5 - Very good 15 October 2024

Questions about The little cafe

What is The little cafe's food hygiene rating?

The little cafe has a food hygiene rating of 5 out of 5 (very good), given by Colchester Council on 28 August 2024.

Is The little cafe safe to eat at?

The rating covers hygiene standards found at inspection, not the food itself. At 5 out of 5, the inspector found hygiene standards at this restaurant to be very good, the top end of the scale.

When was The little cafe last inspected?

The little cafe was last inspected on 28 August 2024, 22 months ago. Food hygiene inspections are unannounced, and the rating is published by Colchester Council rather than by the business.

What did the inspector find at The little cafe?

The inspector scored three areas. Hygienic food handling was rated "good", the cleanliness and condition of the building "good", and confidence in the management of food safety "very good". Lower concern in all three is what earns a high overall rating.

How does The little cafe compare to other places in Colchester?

89% of the 1,335 rated food businesses in Colchester hold the top rating of 5, and The little cafe is one of them.

Who decides the rating?

Colchester Council inspects The little cafe and sets the rating; the Food Standards Agency publishes it. Neither the business nor this site can change a rating, a business that disagrees can appeal to its council, and can request a re-inspection once it has fixed the problems.

Tell me when this changes

The Food Standards Agency publishes only a business's rating today, not what it scored before, and not when it moves. We check every UK rating each night. Watch The little cafe and we will email you the morning after its rating changes.

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Understanding this rating

More food hygiene ratings near here

Colchester inspects and rates 1,631 food businesses across its whole area. See every food hygiene rating in Colchester

The official record is held by the council: https://www.colchester.gov.uk/

Rating from the Food Standards Agency under the Open Government Licence. Ratings reflect standards found at the time of inspection and can change. If you think a rating is wrong, the official record is held by the FSA and the local authority; corrections there flow through here. How ratings work →