Wellingborough Turkish restaurant facing licence review after illegal workers found
A Turkish restaurant in Wellingborough faces losing its licence after an immigration probe found two staff members who did not have the right to work.
Zara Turkish Restaurant, also known as Zara Kitchen, at 43 Cambridge Street was visited by the East of England Immigration Compliance and Enforcement (ICE) in February last year after intelligence was received that the business owner was employing illegal workers.
The Home Office has now applied to North Northamptonshire Council (NNC) for a review of the restaurant licence over concerns with the prevention of crime and disorder.
Zara Kitchen has said that, since the visit, it has introduced clear compliance systems, including mandatory right-to-work checks, to ensure that management meets the standards expected.
The NNC licensing report on the restaurant says the ICE team encountered six individuals working at the premises on February 21, 2025, of which two were identified as working illegally. The Home Office submitted a review application to the council in November 2025.
The application reads: “We have grounds to believe the license holder has failed to meet the licensing objectives of prevention of crime and disorder, as illegal working has been identified at this premises.
“In carrying out the role of responsible authority, Home Office (Immigration Enforcement) is permitted to make relevant representations and objections to the grant of a licence or request a review of an existing licence as a responsible authority where there is concern that a licence and related licensable activity is prejudicial to the prevention of immigration crime.”
A further Home Office document listed on the agenda, containing detailed information on the immigration enforcement team’s findings, is exempt from public disclosure.
Two weeks after the review submission, NNC also received applications to transfer and vary the Designated Premises Supervisor on the premises licence, which changed from Adil Kaya to Meymune Belliki.
Minor variations to the conditions of the premises licence were also requested.
These added a series of enforceable conditions, including retaining mandatory right-to-work checks, regular and recorded training on licensing and employment laws, and the implementation of robust record-keeping systems covering employee details, working hours and payments made.
All three applications were accepted without objection.
The NNC licensing sub-committee will meet next Thursday (January 15) to discuss the next steps to be taken.
The Turkish restaurant currently has a licence for selling alcohol on and off the premises between 10am to midnight Monday to Saturday, and midday to 11.30pm on Sundays.
The committee will decide what action to take and can choose from modifying the licence, excluding a licensable activity, removing the designated premises supervisor, suspending the licence, or stripping the restaurant’s licence entirely.
A spokesman for Zara Kitchen said the recent variations to the licence had been made to ‘strengthen the operating framework of the business’.
They continued: “These measures were introduced to establish clear, auditable compliance systems and to ensure that the management and operation of the premises meet the standards expected by the responsible authorities.
“Zara Kitchen is continuing to cooperate with the relevant bodies and remains focused on operating within the regulatory framework governing licensed premises.”