Greene County food inspections yield fewer violations ahead of the holidays

More than half of the establishments inspected this past week had no violations, according to reports for Greene County food inspections. Of the 24 inspections, 13 had no priority or non-priority violations.

Food inspections take place one to three times a year, depending on the type of food served, the population served, difficulty of food preparation and past history. Restaurants preparing food from raw ingredients are inspected more often "than convenience stores that serve only non-potentially hazardous foods, such as popcorn and soda," according to the Springfield-Greene County Health Department.

Issues found during inspection fall into either priority or non-priority violations. Priority violations impact the safety of the food, such as cross contamination between raw and ready-to-eat food, improper food temperature and poor personal hygiene and employee health. Multiple priority violations can lead to an establishment being shut down. Non-priority violations alone do not directly affect food safety, such as dirty floors, sticky tabletops or outside trash cans not being covered.

More:Mouse droppings, dirty ice machines among findings from Greene County food inspections

Here are more of the food inspections from this past week:

Applebee's Neighborhood Bar & Grill, 2430 N. Glenstone Ave., Springfield. Dec. 15 routine inspection – Result: active. No priority violations. One non-priority violation: Observed employee preparing food without proper facial hair restraint.

Blend for That, 1645 W. Republic Road, Springfield. Dec. 19 routine inspection – Result: active. No violations observed at time of inspection.

Bolton's General Store, 7326 W. State Highway BB, Willard. Dec. 20 routine inspection – Result: active. One priority violation: Observed several open containers of lunchmeat that were not labeled with "use by" dates. Records updated prior to inspector's departure. One non-priority violation: Observed a carton of raw-shell eggs stored on shelf above cooked sausage. Eggs moved to bottom shelf.

Burger King, 3009 S. Campbell Ave., Springfield. Dec. 15 complaint – Result: active. No priority violations. One non-priority violation: Observed build-up of grease on fryers and hoods/vents over fryers and sides of equipment.

Cashew Station, 620 E. Battlefield Road, Springfield. Dec. 20 routine inspection – Result: active. No violations observed at time of inspection.

Discount Express No. 2, 3450 W. Division St., Springfield. Dec. 19 routine inspection – Result: active. Staff corrected marking violation prior to inspector leaving. One priority violation: Observed several items that lacked "use by" dates, including cold bagged cooked chicken tenders, mashed potatoes, red beans, cooked rice and sandwiches. This was taken care of prior to inspector's exit. No non-priority violations.

Don Pedro Grill, 1224 E. US Highway 60 East, Republic. Dec. 21 suspended permit reinspection – Result: approved. No violations observed at time of inspection.

More:From soul food to sushi, here are 15 new restaurants that opened in Springfield in 2022

First Watch, 3103 E. Sunshine St., Springfield. Dec. 21 routine inspection – Result: active. No violations noted at time of inspection.

Grumpy's Lounge, 3455 S. Campbell Ave., Springfield. Dec. 20 routine inspection – result: active. No violations observed at time of inspection.

Hut Missouri LLC D.B.A. Pizza Hut, 2627 N. Kansas Expressway, Springfield. Dec. 15 routine inspection – Result: active. No violations observed at time of inspection.

K Fried Chicken, 3050 S. National Ave., Springfield. Dec. 15 routine inspection – Result: active. No violations observed at time of inspection.

Kum & Go No. 1481, 3623 E. Sunshine St., Springfield. Dec. 19 routine inspection – Result: active. No violations observed at time of inspection.

Kum & Go No. 468, 609 E. Elm St., Springfield. Dec. 21 re-inspection – Result: active. On site for reinspection. Open burrito/yogurt cooler is holding at 41 degrees Fahrenheit. Violation of improper cold holding has been corrected. No violations observed at time of inspection.

Logan Elementary Cafeteria, 7297 E. Farm Road 164, Rogersville. Dec. 20 routine inspection – Result: active. No violations noted at time of inspection.

Mimi's Coffee Bar, LLC, 1900 N. Le Compte Road, Springfield. Dec. 20 routine inspection – Result: active. No violations cited at time of inspection.

Price Cutter Plus No. 52 Starbucks, 2021 W. Republic St., Springfield. Dec. 21 routine inspection – Result: active. No priority violations. One non-priority violation: Observed hand sink faucet is very loose and not sealed, causing entire faucet to move when turning water on.

More: From soul food to sushi, here are 15 new restaurants that opened in Springfield in 2022Edit

Qdoba Mexican Grill, 4127 S. Kansas Expressway, Springfield. Dec. 21 suspended permit reinspection. No priority violations. No non-priority violations.

Relics Event Center, 2015 W. Battlefield Road, Springfield. Dec. 19 routine inspection – Result: active. No violations observed at time of inspection.

Rice House Restaurant, 625 S. Kimbrough Ave., Springfield. Dec. 21 compliance check – Result: out of compliance. On site for compliance check for cleaning mold from walls and grease under wok area. Mold has been cleaned and bleached. Area under wok still needs to be cleaned. Person in charge stated the grease will be cleaned next week. PIC stated they will take the door from the walk-in off the hinges. He said after speaking to repair person, they confirmed the unit in the walk-in freezer can keep up with both spaces. PIC will call after the final fixes are made. All fixes must be made no later than Feb. 28, 2023.

Schuchmann Meats No. 3, 1845 E. Turner St., Springfield. Dec. 15 routine inspection – Result: active. No priority violations found. Two non-priority violations found: Observed walk-in vents unclean, observed employees not wearing proper and effective facial hair restraints.

More: Leaders of massive Springfield stolen catalytic converter ring sentenced to prison timeEdit

Taco Bell, 520 N. Eastgate Ave., Springfield. Dec. 19 routine inspection – Result: active. No violations observed at time of inspection.

Taylor's Drive-In, 139 Memorial Plaza, Springfield. Dec. 15 routine inspection – Result: active. Discussed: 1. Raw meats cannot be stored over ready to eat foods; 2. Paper towels must be available at hand sink at all times. Three priority violations: 1. Observed employee touch raw ground beef, then grab hamburger bun without washing hands. Provided education on hand washing. Employee voluntarily discarded bun, washed hands and put on gloves. 2. Observed employee grab hamburger bun with bare hands and place in basket for customer order. Provided education that employees may not touch ready to eat foods with bare hands. Employee voluntarily discarded bun, then washed hands and put on gloves before returning to work. 3. Observed cut lettuce on counter without being marked for time as a control. Cut lettuce at 63F. Employee stated they always leave the lettuce on the counter without marking it for time as a control. At the end of the day they put it back in the cooler. Discussed time as a control can be used by marking a discard time for no more than 4 hours after removal from temperature control. Any foods dedicated to time as a control must be discarded and cannot be saved or reused for any reason. Employee voluntarily discarded lettuce. No non-priority violations.

Transitions, 323 E. Grand St., Springfield. Dec. 15 routine inspection – Result: active. No violations observed at time of inspection.

Wendy's No. 1061, 4939 W. Chestnut Expressway, Springfield. Dec. 15 re-inspection – Result: active. The prep line was holding 38 to 40 degrees and paper towel dispenser was operational. No violations observed at time of inspection.

Susan Szuch is the health and public policy reporter for the Springfield News-Leader. Follow her on Twitter @szuchsm. Story idea? Email her at sszuch@gannett.com.

This article originally appeared on Springfield News-Leader: Of 24 Greene Co. inspections, 13 had no violations for week of Dec. 15