A popular central London dim sum restaurant has been accused of exploiting illegal workers and potentially breaching modern slavery laws after staff claimed they had been working for food.
Fei Er Cottage has also failed to pay a £180,000 fine issued by the Home Office after half the staff its staff were found to be working illegally when the premises was raided by immigration officers.
On Thursday a licensing review, called by the Home Office, heard that during the enforcement visit four members of staff – two men and a woman from China and a man from Nepal - were arrested.
The venue has been trading in the heart of Westminster for over 30 years. But it exploded in popularity recently after restaurant boss Paul Qiu used social media to promote the venue under the moniker “Uncle Paul”.
His quirky videos about the “best dumplings in London” have garnered more than four million likes and over 100,000 followers across TikTok and Instagram. It’s deep red basement dining area was featured as a set in Keira Knightley’s Netflix spy thriller Black Doves.
A spokesman for the Home Office told the licensing committee: “The ability to work illegally is a key driver of illegal migration, encourages people to break the UK’s immigration laws and provides the practical means for migrants to remain unlawfully in the UK.
“It encourages people to take risks in trying to enter the UK illegally by putting their lives in the hands of unscrupulous people smugglers and leaves them vulnerable to exploitative employers.
“Immigration enforcement do not just drive around looking for businesses to target. We are an intelligence-led agency and there has to be significant concerns in order for us to take action.”
He added that a £180,000 fine had been issued to Fei Er Cottage’s parent company, China Centre Pimlico ltd, but had not been paid by the April 24 deadline and had been now been passed to a debt collection agency.
A Chinese national who came to Britain on a student visa in 2024 limiting him to just 20 hours work a week in term time was questioned during the raid on December 18.
Payslips, uncovered by officers, suggested he had been far exceeding his hours. One showed him more working than 65 hours a week.
The documents suggest he was paid £12.50 an hour, above the £12.21 minimum wage. But he was also “taxed” over a third of his pay by the restaurant.
He was charged £1,296 for “National Insurance payments”, however total tax for a legal worker on the same salary would have been around £550.
Officers also discovered a man by the stove in the basement kitchen who had “clandestinely entered the UK in 2012”.
He had been arrested while working at another Chinese restaurant in 2018, but absconded six months later.
Officers were told he was working a few hours a week in exchange for "a meal", according to Home Office evidence.
Another man, discovered in the kitchen, was asked if his employer was aware of him not holding the right to work in Britain. He evaded the question, according to the Home Office, and replied: "I just went into the kitchen and asked for food the chef told me to cut some veggies and he would give me some rice."
He too had entered the UK illegally almost 10 years previously in 2016.
A spokesman for Westminster licensing authority told the committee said: “I don’t think offences under the modern slavery act can be completely disregarded.
“When I was reading the responses that some of the people working at the premises gave in their interviews, they are either lies or, if they were telling the truth, there were things like ‘I work there for food, I don’t get paid I just help out and I get a meal’.
“If you look at what some of the definitions are in modern slavery, forced labour being made to work for little or no money is one of the key considerations or one of the key indicators of modern slavery taking place.”
A legal representative for the restaurant said it was under new management and staffing issues had been “put right”.
He said: “I’m not here to try and dispute anything that the people have said. We fully accept that there were four people found to be working illegally.
“We fully accept that a fine has been levied against the business. I was under the impression that had been paid, but I’m told not.”
He added: “Mistakes have been made in the previous business but the new management “had no part in this whatsoever”.
Mr Qiu attended the hearing, but claimed he is no longer involved in the business because he is planning to move back to China permanently to care for his unwell mother.
However, the Home Office said he was posting TikTok videos promoting Fei Er Cottage just hours before the licensing hearing and is still listed as the director of another UK-based company on Companies House.
“Information posted on TikTok shows he was posting related to the restaurant 16 hours ago,” the Home Office enforcement office said.
“Videos on TikTok related to Fei Er Cottage. We don’t believe his involvement in the premises will come to an end. We believe it is likely to continue.”
Mr Qiu said: “I would not use my mum’s situation here for a story.”
He added: “We are working hard, we are coming to this country, we do not steal, we work so hard and we pay tax as well. You should give [the new management] a chance and also the 15 staff a chance… They are all doing the right things.”
The restaurant faces losing its licence to sell alcohol and play music. Westminster council said it will publish its decision next week.
