These 6 Beaufort County businesses scored ‘B’ and ‘C’ grades in April health inspections
Six Beaufort County food businesses were cited with grades below an “A” in routine health inspections in April by the S.C. Department of Health and Environmental Control:
Albergotti Grill, 2225 Boundary St. in Beaufort, scored an 82% (B) in a routine inspection on April 10. Among the issues noted: All hand-washing stations without paper towels; moldy produce in coolers; organic buildup on the ice machine; problems with cold food temperatures, lack of dates on prepared foods and food held past the date mark; leak under ice machine and door to the freezer unable to properly close; soda syrup and sticky grime on the floors near the ice machine and grime on the floors in the walk in cooler.
The restaurant was reinspected on April 17 and scored a 100% (A).
Beaufort Wet Willie’s, 2127 Boundary St. in Beaufort, scored an 82% (B) in a routine inspection on April 12. Among the issues noted: Food employee sneezed into gloved hand and continued to work; food employee touched raw product and then utensils and ready-to-eat hamburger buns without a hand wash and glove change; one hand-washing sink blocked with cleaning tools and supplies; one hand-washing sink without paper towels; food employee placed a package of raw hamburger meat on the sandwich prep board while preparing cheese sauce and plating hamburger buns; lack of chlorine sanitizer in the dish machine; build-up of pink organic matter inside of the ice machine; problems with cold food temperatures; containers of dry ingredients without identifying labels; and build up of soap scum, limescale, food crumbs and organic matter on the dish machine.
The restaurant was reinspected on April 21 and scored a 100% (A).
Blue Laguna Mexican Grill and Cantina, 841 William Hilton Parkway Suite L on Hilton Head, scored a 78% (B) in a routine inspection on April 27. Among the issues noted: Oysters stored in the walk-in cooler without identifying tags attached, and shelled oysters stored in standing water; lack of chlorine sanitizer in the dish machine and a build up of soap scum and limescale; organic build up inside the ice machine bin and on the soda nozzles; food without date marks; lack of consumer advisories about raw foods on menu; toothbrush, toothpaste and mouthwash stored with clean dishes; cooler unit near cookline in poor condition; and holes in walls by the ice machine.
The restaurant was reinspected on May 3 and scored a 100% (A).
La Mexicana, 21 Simmonsville Road Suite A in Bluffton, scored a 72% (C) in a routine inspection on April 13. Among the issues noted: Hand sink in meat market area blocked with hose connected to faucet; unpackaged frozen raw animal proteins stored together in a manner that promotes cross contamination in chest freezers; unclean cutting knives at sandwich prep counter; unclean meat saw, meat slicer, butcher cutting board, meat trays and tortilla processing machine; heavy accumulation of organic matter inside ice machine; problems with cold food temperatures; lack of food date marking system and repackaged bulk and house-made food offered for retail sale without labels; tilapia thawing in standing water; garage doors in back food storage room open; live roaches in kitchen near the hand-washing station; large quantity of freshly made masa dough stored improperly, uncovered in back room and exposed to the elements; pork bellies hung to dry in front of a dusty fan on an untreated greasy wooden frame; knives stored improperly and scoops without handles in dry food containers; an untreated 2x4 used as a food contact surface; chest freezer lid in poor condition; unclean spice containers and food storage containers; holes in walls and sagging ceiling tiles in the meat prep room; missing ceiling tiles in kitchen and food prep storage rooms; unclean floors and an excessive amount of tools and unrelated items stored in tortilla processing room.
The restaurant was reinspected on April 18 and scored a 96% (A).
New Sake Grill and Sushi, 1017 Fording Island Road Suite F104 in Bluffton, scored a 79% (B) in a routine inspection on April 12. Among the issues noted: Multiple food handlers went outside and returned to preparing food without hand-washing; escolar offered on menu labeled as white tuna; prep table not sanitized after use; spatula washed but not sanitized before re-use with different animal protein; several cutting boards with heavy accumulation of black organic buildup and deep scoring; utensils and food strainer stored with food residue; problems with both hot and cold food temperatures; lack of consumer advisory about raw sushi on menu; multiple unlabled chemical spray bottles; bleach and dish soap stored on top of onions; open Vaseline stored above hot line; large crack in sliding glass door cooler and other issues with the cooler; cutting board in use with large crack in center.
The restaurant was reinspected on April 21 and scored a 100% (A).
Tio’s Latin American Kitchen, 7 Venture Drive #106 in Bluffton, scored a 96% (B) in a follow-up inspection on April 20. Even though that normally would merit an A grade, the business was given a B because of food temperature issues in the walk-in cooler that had been noted in a routine inspection the day before.
The restaurant was reinspected on April 21 and scored a 100% (A).
What the grades mean
Inspectors hand out a grade of A, B or C, depending on the conditions found at the time. Points are docked for a variety of infractions, and restaurants have a chance to correct the problems and improve their score.
A: 88% to 100%
B: 78% to 87%
C: 77% or less
During April, DHEC recorded 147 inspections of restaurants, schools, stores and other food establishments in Beaufort County. The agency publishes the results of health inspections on its website.
Newer food grade decals will include a QR code that customers can scan with their phones to see the food establishment’s latest report.
Below are the SC DHEC restaurant grades in Beaufort County from April 1-30, 2023.
At the top left of the chart, there is a space to search for the name of a restaurant. Please note that this month’s inspections take up two pages. Switch to page 2 at the top right.
