Tien Court, a Chinese restaurant at Copthorne King's Hotel, has had its licence suspended for two weeks, from Jan 12.

The National Environment Agency (NEA) was investigating a possible food poisoning case at the restaurant, Chinese evening paper Shin Min Daily News reported on Friday.

A suspension notice from the NEA said the restaurant accumulated 12 demerit points over the past year and was fined $800 for bringing food that is "unfit for human consumption" into the restaurant and selling unclean food.

But a sign outside Tien Court says the restaurant is closed for renovations and will open on Jan 26. A staff member also told Shin Min Daily that the temporary closure had nothing to do with food hygiene issues.

Several staff members reportedly fell ill a few months ago, and with a manpower shortage, the head chef Ho Tien Tsai could not go to film a recording for a local cooking show.

He declined to comment when asked about the suspension notice and his staff falling ill.