A DEAD mouse floating in a bucket led a Knightsbridge restaurant to pay out a whopping £21,000 in fines and court costs.
The Shanghai Restaurant in Brompton Road was closed by Kensington and Chelsea Council's environmental health officers on October 25, 2007.
A routine food hygiene inspection found cockroaches in its fridge, a dead mouse floating in a bucket, insects running over food preparation areas and droppings littering the kitchen.
The main sink did not have any hot running water and there was a failure to ensure that a food safety management system was in place.
At West London Magistrates' Court last Wednesday, director Yui Tong Man was ordered to pay more than £21,000 for food hygiene breaches.
He was fined £15,000 and ordered to pay £6,608.70 for the council's costs and a £15 victim surcharge.
The total cost was £21,623.
Lead member for environmental health, Cllr Julie Mills, said: "The Shanghai Restaurant fell well below the standards we expect.
"There is no excuse for this sort of behaviour and I welcome the court's decision to fine them.
"It sends out a clear message to others who may be failing to keep their restaurants to the standards we all expect."