Riverside Cafe Lewes food hygiene rating
Restaurant/Cafe/Canteen · Lewes
Riverside Cafe Lewes holds a 3: generally satisfactory. The restaurant met the legal standard, but the inspector recorded enough minor issues that it fell short of a good or very good rating.
The rating: 3 - Generally satisfactory
The rating dates from 3 February 2025, 17 months ago. Councils typically re-inspect higher-risk businesses every six months to two years, with well-run, low-risk places visited least often, so this is a normal gap.
Address: Riverside Cafe Bar Riverside High Street, Lewes, BN7 2RE
How it compares in Lewes
In Lewes, 85% of rated places manage a 5, so Riverside Cafe Lewes sits behind roughly 829 nearby businesses. 3% of the borough shares its 3.
| 5 out of 5 | 740 | 85% | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 4 out of 5 | 89 | 10% | ||
| 3 out of 5 | 25 | 3% | ← Riverside Cafe Lewes | |
| 2 out of 5 | 4 | <1% | ||
| 1 out of 5 | 11 | 1% | ||
| 0 out of 5 | 1 | <1% |
A further 90 businesses in the area are awaiting inspection or exempt, so are not counted above.
What the inspector found
- Hygienic food handling Good
- Cleanliness & condition of the building Generally satisfactory
- How well they manage food safety Generally satisfactory
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 Riverside Cafe Lewes 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 Riverside Cafe Lewes, nearest first, so you can see how it compares to its neighbours.
| Business | Distance | Rating | Inspected |
|---|---|---|---|
| Poppys Retailers - other | at this address | 5 - Very good | 18 July 2025 |
| Riverside Brasserie Restaurant/Cafe/Canteen | at this address | 5 - Very good | 15 January 2026 |
| Bake Out Retailers - other | 15 yards away | 5 - Very good | 9 December 2025 |
| JG Foods Ltd Retailers - other | 42 yards away | 5 - Very good | 23 July 2025 |
| Cornish Bakery Retailers - other | 51 yards away | 5 - Very good | 11 March 2026 |
| Bill's Restaurant/Cafe/Canteen | 64 yards away | 5 - Very good | 11 August 2025 |
| Cook Retailers - other | 79 yards away | 5 - Very good | 31 March 2025 |
| Holland and Barrett Retailers - other | 88 yards away | 5 - Very good | 27 February 2025 |
Questions about Riverside Cafe Lewes
What is Riverside Cafe Lewes's food hygiene rating?
Riverside Cafe Lewes has a food hygiene rating of 3 out of 5 (generally satisfactory), given by Lewes Council on 3 February 2025.
Is Riverside Cafe Lewes safe to eat at?
A 3 means the restaurant met the legal standard, so it is lawful to eat there, but the inspector recorded issues that stopped it scoring higher. It is the middle of the scale.
When was Riverside Cafe Lewes last inspected?
Riverside Cafe Lewes was last inspected on 3 February 2025, 17 months ago. Food hygiene inspections are unannounced, and the rating is published by Lewes Council rather than by the business.
What did the inspector find at Riverside Cafe Lewes?
The inspector scored three areas. Hygienic food handling was rated "good", the cleanliness and condition of the building "generally satisfactory", and confidence in the management of food safety "generally satisfactory". Lower concern in all three is what earns a high overall rating.
How does Riverside Cafe Lewes compare to other places in Lewes?
85% of the 870 rated food businesses in Lewes hold the top rating of 5, while Riverside Cafe Lewes holds a 3. 25 places in the area share that rating.
Who decides the rating?
Lewes Council inspects Riverside Cafe Lewes 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 Riverside Cafe Lewes and we will email you the morning after its rating changes.
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Understanding this rating
More food hygiene ratings near here
Lewes inspects and rates 960 food businesses across its whole area. See every food hygiene rating in Lewes →
The official record is held by the council: http://www.lewes-eastbourne.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 →