4

Whats Cooking food hygiene rating

Retailers - other · South Oxfordshire

Whats Cooking holds a 4, meaning hygiene standards at the shop are good. It is a solid result, the inspector found nothing serious, though a 5 was just out of reach.

The rating: 4 - Good

The rating dates from 16 October 2025, 8 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: 6-7 Cornmarket, Thame, Oxon, OX9 3DX

How it compares in South Oxfordshire

In South Oxfordshire, 71% of rated places manage a 5, so Whats Cooking sits behind roughly 808 nearby businesses. 16% of the borough shares its 4.

Every rated food business in South Oxfordshire
5 out of 5 808 71%
4 out of 5 186 16% ← Whats Cooking
3 out of 5 120 11%
2 out of 5 17 1%
1 out of 5 5 <1%
0 out of 5 0 0%

A further 116 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 Whats Cooking 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 Whats Cooking, nearest first, so you can see how it compares to its neighbours.

Business Distance Rating Inspected
Birdcage Inn Pub/bar/nightclub 18 yards away 5 - Very good 28 May 2025
Black Goo Restaurant/Cafe/Canteen 22 yards away 4 - Good 16 April 2026
Little Shop of Cheese Retailers - other 28 yards away 5 - Very good 21 January 2025
Prezzo Restaurant/Cafe/Canteen 29 yards away 5 - Very good 23 September 2025
Wrens of Thame Retailers - other 35 yards away 5 - Very good 26 March 2025
GAIL's Thame Restaurant/Cafe/Canteen 40 yards away 5 - Very good 18 June 2024
Oxfam Retailers - other 53 yards away 5 - Very good 16 December 2022
The Black Horse Pub/bar/nightclub 62 yards away 5 - Very good 29 June 2026

Questions about Whats Cooking

What is Whats Cooking's food hygiene rating?

Whats Cooking has a food hygiene rating of 4 out of 5 (good), given by South Oxfordshire Council on 16 October 2025.

Is Whats Cooking safe to eat at?

The rating covers hygiene standards found at inspection, not the food itself. At 4 out of 5, the inspector found hygiene standards at this shop to be good, the top end of the scale.

When was Whats Cooking last inspected?

Whats Cooking was last inspected on 16 October 2025, 8 months ago. Food hygiene inspections are unannounced, and the rating is published by South Oxfordshire Council rather than by the business.

What did the inspector find at Whats Cooking?

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

How does Whats Cooking compare to other places in South Oxfordshire?

71% of the 1,136 rated food businesses in South Oxfordshire hold the top rating of 5, while Whats Cooking holds a 4. 186 places in the area share that rating.

Who decides the rating?

South Oxfordshire Council inspects Whats Cooking 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 Whats Cooking and we will email you the morning after its rating changes.

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Understanding this rating

More food hygiene ratings near here

Whats Cooking is one of 430 rated food businesses in Oxon. See every hygiene rating in Oxon

South Oxfordshire inspects and rates 1,252 food businesses across its whole area. See every food hygiene rating in South Oxfordshire

The official record is held by the council: https://www.southoxon.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 →