A RESTAURANT has urged residents to give it a second chance after improving its hygiene rating.

Wildwood Kitchen in Abingdon has struggled to regain customers' trust one year since council inspectors rapped it for cooking pink burgers.

But the Bury Street branch has progressed since its two-star rating last May, which was replaced by a four-star rating in October.

Jo Bargery, managing director of Wildwood, said: "The restaurant was brand new - it was never dirty, it was more to do with the way we were cooking burgers because that's what customers wanted. It's now very much a case of saying 'we can't cook it like that'.

"With restaurants everybody looks at the rating and not what that means. People might think it's filthy or pest-ridden when it could just be something like a broken floor tile [that dragged down the rating]."

Inspectors at Vale of White Horse District Council criticised Wildwood in its initial report for not cooking burgers thoroughly.

In May last year the Food Standards Agency issued new guidelines that instruct restaurants to employ strict rules if they decide to cook burgers rare, as it is classed as a high-risk food.

The council's report also highlighted how some meats were being stored at too high a temperature, and urged staff to keep the back door closed to 'prevent access to pests'.

Wildwood opened in the town in April and was reinspected in October, earning a higher rating of four stars out of a possible five.

Mrs Bargery credited the improvement to a new management team, which was brought in following the earlier rating.

She said: "We opened quite quickly and there were lessons to be learnt. We have a new general manager who used to be at Pizza Express, who is doing a great job.

"For people who have tried us before and for some reason haven't had a great experience, or haven't tried us before but were put off by the report, we are hoping they will give us another opportunity."

Mrs Bargery said she was 'confident' her team can make a success of the Abingdon branch, adding: "It's a great town and the restaurant is in a nice area. We are really lucky to have that site and such a big space."

The nationwide chain also has branches in Wantage, Bicester and Didcot.