Soho House, the private members' club, has launched an investigation after out-of-date food was mislabelled in one of its kitchens. The club, which charges up to £4,500 a year for membership, apologised after a former employee posted a TikTok video exposing the issue.
Former employee's claims
The unnamed employee, on an account named "Soho House Opp," claimed: "Two days ago I was fired from Soho House, the one at Shoreditch. I was fired after I complained about people changing labels and selling out-of-date food to customers." The employee said he was "pressured" to change labels to mask out-of-date food. He made an internal complaint first, and when he felt sufficient action was not taken, he submitted a complaint to the council. He says he was fired shortly after.
A Soho House spokesperson said the employee's contract was terminated for reasons unrelated to his complaint.
Council investigation
A Hackney council spokesperson said it had received, and is reviewing, a health and safety complaint relating to Shoreditch House, one of the club's ten London locations. The spokesperson said: "We have received a report about food safety and hygiene at Shoreditch House and have opened an investigation."
It is illegal to sell food past its "use-by" date, but food can be sold after its "best before" date as long as it is of acceptable quality. Restaurants and other commercial kitchens have a strict legal duty to ensure all food served to customers is safe and fit for human consumption.
Club's response
A Soho House spokesperson apologised for the mislabelling incident, describing it as an isolated occurrence, and confirmed an investigation has been launched. They added: "We're really sorry that this isolated food labelling incident took place at one of our kitchens. This is not how we expect our Houses to operate and it is not company policy. We have taken immediate action, including our director of health and safety together with an external independent consultant conducting an investigation as a matter of priority."
The spokesperson said the location takes food hygiene seriously, adding: "Delivering the highest level of food safety for our members and guests is incredibly important to us. Shoreditch House has consistently achieved the highest food hygiene rating score of 5 from environmental health inspections – including the most recent in March this year – and also performed strongly in an independent and unannounced external audit last week."
Soho House was founded in 1995 with a single club in central London. It has 10 locations in London and 48 that are either open or planned around the world, from Paris and Istanbul to Bangkok and Mumbai. It has four clubs in Los Angeles and three in New York. The club chain has had financial issues in recent years, with members complaining it was no longer as exclusive as it used to be. Owners have attempted to turn its fortunes around by opening a more "exclusive" location in Mayfair and launching mini two-sip cocktails, as well as IV drips, to attract younger members.
