Indian restaurant shut down by court order for 'smelling like curry'
A popular curry house has been forced to close after two decades in business following complaints about it smelling of curry. Cinnamons Restaurant in Wheatley, Oxfordshire, had been operating for over 20 years when a complaint was made to South Oxfordshire District Council about the "curry odours" emanating from the restaurant in 2021.
After environmental health officers visited and upheld the complaint, the Bangladeshi restaurant said they spent around £35,000 for a new extractor fan to combat the odour. However, another complaint was made and the curry house was served an abatement notice, which deemed Cinnamons' new ventilation system to be defective.
Unable to afford the installation cost of a new system, which the restaurant claimed to be in the region of £50,000, Cinnamons was taken to court and forced to pay a £25,000 fine after pleading guilty in October 2024. Despite the funds spent, the council issued a further abatement notice and in May this year, Cinnamons announced that it could not afford the demands and would close in mid-June, making 10 people unemployed.
South Oxfordshire District Council said they have no option but to prosecute "if measures are not introduced to solve the issue and abatement notices are breached" and that Cinnamons "admitted that they could have done more to mitigate the odour". Restaurateur Shirazul Hoque, 32, told PA Real Life: "The village wants the restaurant to stay, otherwise we would have closed before paying the £25,000 fine.
"It's really hard for us and feels absolutely wrong as we love our village... it is hurtful to have our cuisine, which is loved, described as producing obnoxious odours that stink." All our employees have families and the chefs who live above the restaurant will be made homeless – it's a big punch in the gut."
Cinnamons Restaurant has been operating in Wheatley, Oxfordshire, since 2000. Shirazul's uncles took over the business in 2012, and they have been serving Bangladeshi and Indian food there ever since. Many TripAdvisor reviews describe the restaurant as an important part of the community.
"We are so lucky to have this restaurant in our village," one review reads. In 2021, the restaurant won the TripAdvisor Travellers' Choice award, which is given to businesses that consistently earn great reviews from travellers and are ranked within the top 10% in their field on TripAdvisor.
That same year, an odour complaint was made to South Oxfordshire District Council against the restaurant. An officer from the Environmental Health Agency upheld the complaint. After over two decades of service, Shirazul claimed Cinnamons had never received such a complaint but as a result installed a roughly £35,000 ventilation system as demanded.
"We wanted to resolve it because we've been here for 20 years, we love our village and we wanted to do something about it," Shirazul said. A higher specification ventilation model was suggested by a consultant, but the restaurant felt they could not afford the installation cost, estimated to be roughly £50,000, nor the maintenance cost.
Despite the expensive work carried out by a reputable company with over 30 years of experience, Shirazul said, another complaint was lodged with the council. The Environmental Protection Team was sent to the restaurant and the odour was deemed to be unacceptable, and their ventilator defective.
Cinnamons were then asked to rectify the ventilation system. "We weren't able to afford it," Shirazul said. "To be honest, business had not rebounded post-Covid, we'd not been making any profit so we didn't have the money for this."
Since no action was taken, the restaurant was issued with an abatement notice and taken to court. Cinnamons pleaded guilty and accepted a £25,000 fine in October 2024. The issue of ventilation was still deemed unsolved however which left the restaurant facing a further expense estimated by Shirazul to be in the region of £50,000.
On Monday May 19, Cinnamons realised they were unable to continue fighting the battle, telling their 10 employees they were without a job. "It's very hard to share this story because I've spent a lot of my time in the business," Shirazul said.
Asked what other restaurants can learn from his situation, Shirazul said: "Do due diligence in seeing how the council environmental health officers operate and learn the appeal process."
He also says that on Sunday June 15, their last day of trading, the restaurant will be giving out free meals to anyone who comes through. "It's a gesture of thanks for all the support we've received through the difficulties of the last few years," he said.
"It's a way of saying thank you for standing by us."
South Oxfordshire District Council said in a statement: "The council has a legal duty to investigate nuisance complaints about smells from industrial, trade and business premises that could be a statutory nuisance. We always aim to advise and support businesses on how they can resolve issues. However, if measures are not introduced to solve the issue and abatement notices are breached, we have no option but to prosecute.
"In the case of Cinnamons Restaurant in Wheatley, the Council's Environmental Protection Team has assessed the odour complaint following our procedures and legislation. An extensive investigation at this site determined a statutory nuisance existed in relation to the kitchen's ventilation systems.
"Cinnamons Cuisine Limited, who run the restaurant, has since failed to follow our recommendations and has breached an environmental abatement notice on several occasions between October 2023 and April 2024. Cinnamons pleaded guilty to four charges ahead of a scheduled three-day court appearance on Wednesday 2 October 2024.
"The District Judge at Oxford Magistrates' Court reviewed the evidence and statements provided by council officers and the company, and taking into consideration the revised guilty plea, the judge ordered that the company pay a total of £25,000 – this includes an £11,000 fine, an award of full costs of £12,000 to South Oxfordshire District Council, alongside a victim surcharge of £2,000.
"As well as pleading guilty to the charges of statutory nuisance laid against them, Cinnamons admitted that they could have done more to mitigate the odour. The council can advise and assist where we can, but ultimately responsibility for fixing the problem sits with the business.
"The business has been provided advice and guidance on steps they can take but to date have failed to follow our recommendations.
"Cinnamons is still the subject of an ongoing legal case, and we will therefore not be in a position to comment any further on this case other than the information provided in the statement above."
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