Pub's pizza kitchen shuts due to heatwave

A chef has spoken of the decision to close his kitchen over the past few days "due to the sheer amount of heat".

Tony Church operates his "very small" Moonie's Pizzas kitchen from The Star pub just off the Cowley Road in Oxford.

He described it as a popular spot, which got "pretty spicy in the kitchen" during the record heat temperatures on Monday and Tuesday.

Although the pub, which remains open, had remained cooler Church said the kitchen closure had been "a real pain for the company" but it took the decision to "keep everybody safe".

"Making pizzas is a very active part of cooking - we're opening up our dough every day and putting it in the hot oven," he said, adding they needed about two people just to make dough daily.

He added the kitchen could only fit three people inside and the oven had to be on at all times.

"It can get super busy - we're getting over a hundred people in and out every hour," he said.

The chef said things had got "pretty spicy in the kitchen, specifically" during the heights of the heat but it had remained a little bit cooler in the pub.

Staff could use their "lovely walk-in fridge" to cool off.

Church said they had taken the decision to close on Sunday evening when they saw the weather forecast for the bank holiday.

"We didn't want to, but just due to the sheer amount of heat in Oxford right now, it's just something we had to do," he said, adding they wanted to "keep everybody safe".

The chef said it had been "a real pain for the company" and the kitchen remains closed.

Staff posted on Instagram they would be back up and running "once the neck fans arrive".