Café Noa at Market Hall has been officially awarded a top-tier food hygiene rating following a re-inspection by DEFA.
The announcement comes after the business said there was some initial confusion over the island’s adoption of a UK-style star-based system.
Team Noa shared the update, stating: “We’re happy to share that Café Noa at Market Hall has now officially been awarded a 5-Star Food Hygiene Rating.”
The café underwent a surprise inspection in April—its first in over a decade—and addressed administrative issues within a week.
However, the team expressed surprise at the scoring method, saying: “We didn’t even know we were being assessed that way.”
Communicated
The company said DEFA had not formally communicated its shift to a star-based system, which Tynwald had previously voted against.
It explained: “Although Tynwald previously voted against adopting a 5-star system, DEFA recently moved toward a more UK-style audit approach.”
The ratings were initially intended for internal use, but their public release via a Freedom of Information request caused confusion.
“It was never DEFA’s intention to publish these star ratings,” the post read.
After a reinspection last week, Café Noa secured the top rating.
The team thanked supporters, saying: “To everyone who’s messaged, popped in, or shared support, thank you.”
They added: “We’ll be following up with DEFA and our MHKs in due course. We think there’s a better way to roll this out.”
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