All of these Southend restaurants and eateries hold perfect food hygiene scores.

Restaurants and takeaways are regularly and randomly inspected by the Food Standards Agency to ensure the correct protocol is being followed in relation to food handling and safety, cleanliness and the general upkeep of the business.

The firms listed below were all so impressive the inspectors gave them the top score of five out of five.

The food hygiene scoring system goes from zero to five.

A score of zero means “urgent improvement necessary” while a score of five means “very good”.

During the inspection, the officer will check the following three elements:

• how hygienically the food is handled – how it is prepared, cooked, re-heated, cooled and stored

• the physical condition of the business –including cleanliness, layout, lighting, ventilation, pest control and other facilities

• how the business manages ways of keeping food safe, looking at processes, training and systems to ensure good hygiene is maintained.

The officer can then assess the level of confidence in standards being maintained in the future.

As the council inspects every business that serves food in a large enough capacity, schools, churches and nursing homes often make the list too.

The firms listed below all received a score of five out of five in the past month.

Ivy Downs Guest House – hotel, bed and breakfast, guest house.

Echo: Google Street imagesGoogle Street images

Address: 50-52 Hartington Road, Southend-On-Sea, Essex,SS1 2HS

Inspection date: January 3

Henry Higgins -takeaway, sandwich shop

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Address: 66 London Road, Southend-On-Sea, Essex, SS1 1PG

Inspection date: January 2

Pete's Café- Restaurant, Café, Canteen

Echo: Google Street imagesGoogle Street images

Address: 34 Southchurch Road, Southend-On-Sea, Essex, SS1 2ND

Inspection date: December 30, 2019

Hannah's- Retailers and other

Echo: Google Street imagesGoogle Street images

Address: 681 Southchurch Road, Southend-On-Sea, Essex, SS1 2PW

Inspection date: December 30, 2019

Maranatha Rest Home – Hospitals, Childcare, Caring Premises

Echo: Google Street imagesGoogle Street images

Address: 211 York Road, Southend-On-Sea, Essex, SS1 2RU

Inspection date: December 27, 2019

Cookies & Cones Express – Restaurant, Café, Canteen 

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Address: 69 Southchurch Road, Southend-On-Sea, Essex, SS1 2NL

Inspection date: December 24, 2019.

Yoga Dharma – Restaurant, Café, Canteen

Echo: Google Street imagesGoogle Street images

Address: 129 Southchurch Road, Southend-On-Sea, Essex, SS1 2NW

Inspection date: December 20, 2019.

Roosters Piri Piri – Restaurant, Café, Canteen

Echo: Google Street imagesGoogle Street images

Address: 42B London Road, Southend-On-Sea, Essex, SS1 1NT

Inspection date: December 20, 2019

Hush- Pub, bar, nightclub

Echo: Google Street imagesGoogle Street images

Address: 19 - 21 Clarence Road, Southend-On-Sea, Essex, SS1 1AN

Inspection date: December 18, 2019

Subway- Takeaway, sandwich shop

Echo: Google Street imagesGoogle Street images

Address: 85 Prince Avenue, Southend-On-Sea, Essex, SS2 6RL

Inspection date: December 16, 2019