5

The Squirrel Tea Room food hygiene rating

Restaurant/Cafe/Canteen · Sefton

The Squirrel Tea Room 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 17 September 2024, 21 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: 666b Liverpool Road, Ainsdale, PR8 3LT

How it compares in Sefton

That puts The Squirrel Tea Room among the 1,796 places in Sefton holding top marks, 84% 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 Sefton
5 out of 5 1,796 84% ← The Squirrel Tea Room
4 out of 5 216 10%
3 out of 5 83 4%
2 out of 5 18 1%
1 out of 5 15 1%
0 out of 5 0 0%

A further 265 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 Squirrel Tea Room 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 Squirrel Tea Room, nearest first, so you can see how it compares to its neighbours.

Business Distance Rating Inspected
Brough Butchers (Ainsdale) Retailers - other 64 yards away 5 - Very good 17 March 2026
Esperanto's Bistro Restaurant/Cafe/Canteen 64 yards away 5 - Very good 28 October 2025
Bargain Booze Ainsdale Retailers - other 72 yards away 5 - Very good 13 August 2024
Co-operative Retailers - supermarkets/hypermarkets 122 yards away 5 - Very good 8 January 2025
In Den Engel Pub/bar/nightclub 170 yards away 5 - Very good 8 January 2025
Dolce Vita Restaurant Restaurant/Cafe/Canteen 287 yards away 5 - Very good 22 January 2025
Harbour Cafe Bar Restaurant/Cafe/Canteen 332 yards away 5 - Very good 16 February 2022
Jade Gardens Restaurant/Cafe/Canteen 376 yards away 5 - Very good 6 August 2025

Questions about The Squirrel Tea Room

What is The Squirrel Tea Room's food hygiene rating?

The Squirrel Tea Room has a food hygiene rating of 5 out of 5 (very good), given by Sefton Council on 17 September 2024.

Is The Squirrel Tea Room 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 Squirrel Tea Room last inspected?

The Squirrel Tea Room was last inspected on 17 September 2024, 21 months ago. Food hygiene inspections are unannounced, and the rating is published by Sefton Council rather than by the business.

What did the inspector find at The Squirrel Tea Room?

The inspector scored three areas. Hygienic food handling was rated "very good", the cleanliness and condition of the building "very 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 Squirrel Tea Room compare to other places in Sefton?

84% of the 2,128 rated food businesses in Sefton hold the top rating of 5, and The Squirrel Tea Room is one of them.

Who decides the rating?

Sefton Council inspects The Squirrel Tea Room 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 Squirrel Tea Room and we will email you the morning after its rating changes.

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Understanding this rating

More food hygiene ratings near here

The Squirrel Tea Room is one of 55 rated food businesses in Ainsdale. See every hygiene rating in Ainsdale

Sefton inspects and rates 2,393 food businesses across its whole area. See every food hygiene rating in Sefton

The official record is held by the council: http://www.sefton.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 →