Eddie Rockets in Dublin’s Point Village was ordered to close immediately last month after inspectors found “fresh rodent droppings” and evidence of contamination through rat “urine and faeces” in the kitchen of the East Wall branch of the popular restaurant chain.
The closure order was among seven orders served by the Food Safety Authority of Ireland (FSAI) on businesses in Dublin, Louth, Roscommon and Limerick in March 2025 for breaches of food safety legislation.
An inspection of the Eddie Rockets in Point Village, near the Dublin docklands area, on March 26th 2025 found “the presence of multiple fresh rodent droppings in multiple areas throughout the kitchen including; in the wash up area, in the area where cleaning equipment is stored”.
The restaurant inspection found rodents in the kitchen were likely to have contaminated “open ready to eat foods” such as a salad, dips and sauce.
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“Food, food preparation surfaces, food contact equipment and food packaging which rodents have come into contact with is likely to be contaminated with harmful pathogens such as Salmonella spp. which rodents carry on their paws and excrete in their urine and faeces,” said the report by a HSE Environmental Health Officer.
“This renders the food produced in these conditions likely to be unsafe and thus poses a grave an immediate risk to public health.”
The inspection also found kitchen food equipment, including chopping boards, food trays and whisks, was dirty and food prepared using this equipment was likely to be contaminated, according to the report.
The closure order was lifted five days later on March 31st.
China Palace in Roscommon town, Yomari Foods in Boyle, Co Roscommon, Republic of Grill in Limerick city and the PY Fast Food Stall on Dublin’s Moore street were also ordered to close, while owner of wholesaler Stela Foods was served with closure orders at its Drogheda and Mulhuddart locations.
China Palace was served with a closure order following a HSE-led environmental inspection on March 26th due to the “grave and immediate danger to public health” and the discovery of a dead rat on the premises.
Inspectors found evidence of rodent infestation in a room housing the staff toilet, staff storage facilities and laundry facilities, while a “dead rat was observed in a rat trap and numerous rat droppings were observed behind a washing machine”. The closure order was lifted on April 1st.
The Yamari Foods takeaway on Main Street in Boyle, Co Roscommon was ordered to close for two days following a March 19th inspection which found the property’s drainage system was “completely blocked with foul water waste” and there was “food debris overflowing throughout the yard”.
An inspection of the Stela Foods unit in Greenhills Business park, Drogheda, Co Louth on March 19th found dead and live mice in the warehouse and rodent droppings throughout the warehouse, on equipment used to decant and repackage food, on machinery, on food and on food packaging. Dead flies, insects, dirt and dust was also found on food, packaging and equipment.
The Food Safety Authority inspector reported the warehouse’s failure to prevent pest access to food was likely to result in a “grave and immediate danger to public health” and the food store’s managing director, Adriatik Shabani was served with a closure order.
The closure orders on Republic of Grill in Limerick city and the PY Fast Food Stall on Dublin’s Moore Street were temporary.
Closure and prohibition orders are only served when there is “serious and immediate risk to consumer health” or “persistent and significant breaches of food law”, said FSAI chief executive Greg Dempsey. “There can be no excuse for putting consumers’ health at risk through negligent practices and failing to comply with the legal requirements. Food businesses have a legal responsibility to ensure the food they sell or serve is safe to eat.”
