Improper hand washing, expired foods among 34 health violations at 7 Phoenix area restaurants

Kunle Falayi and Michael Braga, Arizona Republic
·7 min read

Maricopa County health inspectors cited seven restaurants for 34 health violations during the week of Dec. 15. The violations ranged from an egg custard pie purchased from an unapproved vendor to a food slicer and a can opener with food debris on them.

A priority violation is a major violation that directly contributes to an increased risk of foodborne illness or injury. If listed in inspection reports, remedies implemented during the inspection are noted.

During the week of Dec. 15, inspectors visited nearly 1,270 restaurants along with other food-serving facilities in hospitals, senior homes and schools. Two hundred and forty restaurants received an "A" rating. See a sampling of the many restaurants that inspectors graded "A" at the end of this article.

7 violations

At My Place Cafe, 3450 W. Chandler Blvd., Chandler

  • One employee who was cleaning put on gloves to handle food without washing their hands. Another employee cracked a raw eggshell and continued handling food without washing their hands. A third employee who was wearing gloves touched their glasses and continued cooking without washing their hands and putting on new gloves. The person in charge had all three employees wash their hands and put on clean gloves.

  • An employee washed their hands for less than 10 seconds. The manager had the employee rewash hands properly, for at least 20 seconds, and dry them with a paper towel.

  • Egg custard pie available for sale was purchased from an unapproved supplier. The pie was embargoed and then removed from the establishment.

  • Cartons of raw eggs were stored on an upper wire shelf in the walk-in fridge above noodles and produce. The manager moved the eggs to proper storage.

  • No detectable sanitizer was in use in the automatic low-temperature dishwasher. The manager set up the three-compartment sink and had dishware manually sanitized.

  • Cooked chicken in peanut sauce was on the stove at 116F.  The manager had the chicken and sauce reheated to above 165F.

  • A pan of beef stew was on the top of the cold table for more than two hours. The manager discarded it.

6 violations

Kneaders Bakery and Cafe, 5155 E. Baseline Road, Gilbert

  • An employee rinsed her hands in a sink without using soap. The employee re-washed her hands with soap for 20 seconds.

  • An employee swept with gloves on. The employee took off the gloves and donned new gloves to handle food without washing hands. Another employee put on a hairnet and then put on gloves to handle food without washing hands. The employees removed their gloves and washed their hands before putting on new gloves.

  • A food slicer and can opener had food debris on them. The slicer and can opener were removed to be cleaned.

  • Dishes in sanitizer solution were not fully submerged. The need to have them fully submerged was discussed with the person in charge.

  • Chicken noodle soup was observed in a hot holding container with an internal temperature of 90F. The soup was removed for proper reheating.

  • Bacon, American cheese, sour-cream-based kneader's sauce, black bean and corn mixture, various cheeses and chopped cabbage were the cook line with internal temperatures ranging from 47F to 59F. All foods within time and temperature parameters were moved to walk-in. All foods that were in units for an unknown amount of time were discarded.

5 violations

The Craftsman Cocktails & Kitchen, 1006 E. Warner Road, Tempe

  • Two cartons of strawberries with pronounced white organic matter were in the walk-in cooler. The kitchen manager discarded the berries.

  • Raw salmon was stored over ready-to-eat cooked noodles in the kitchen reach-in fridge. The chef adjusted levels at the time of inspection with the ready-to-eat food on top.

  • A bartender rinsed out drink mixers for customer service in the hand sink. The drink mixers were taken to the back dishwasher for cleaning.

  • The bar dishwasher was not dispensing chlorine. The bartender agreed to wash all dishes from the bar in the kitchen dishwasher until the bar dishwasher was repaired.

  • Bacon jam, smoked sauce, Tiramisu cream, cooked scallion sauce, aji amarillo, Chimichurri sauce, and bleu cheese dressing were in the kitchen reach-in fridge with expiration dates between Nov. 1 and Dec. 2. The food was discarded.

4 violations

La Merced Mexican Kitchen, 855 W. University Drive, Mesa

  • The dishwasher was dispensing no chlorine after multiple runs. The facility will use a three-compartment sink until the dishwasher can dispense chlorine at 50-100 parts per million of chlorine.

  • Salsa was in a large closed container at 50-54F. The person in charge said it was made the night prior. The salsa was discarded.

  • Rice was on the hot holding line at 117-128F. The rice was reheated and placed back on the line.

  • The concentration of chlorine in sanitizer buckets was above 100 ppm. The buckets were remade with a concentration of 50 ppm.

Chennai Fusion Grill, 4929 W. Chandler Blvd., Chandler

  • An employee handling food washed hands with gloves on and returned to food handling. The manager had the employee remove the gloves, wash hands and put on clean gloves to handle ready-to-eat food.

  • No detectable sanitizer was in the in-use automatic low-temperature dishwasher. The manager had all recently washed equipment returned to the three-compartment sink for manual sanitizing.

  • Eight deep containers of tomato and onion gravy, cooked and set to cool in the walk-in the previous day, were at 49-53F. The manager discarded the food.

  • First aid kit, burn spray and employee medications were stored on shelves above prep tables with open containers of food. The manager had the medicines and kit removed to proper storage.

The Preserve Tavern & Grille, 15745 N. Hayden Road, Scottsdale

  • An employee in the kitchen was handling dirty dishware and then handled cooking equipment without a proper hand wash. The employee was instructed to wash hands to continue with the task.

  • An employee hit tongs on the trash can, rinsed the tongs, and then moved back to the cook line for continued use. The tongs were washed in the dishwasher.

  • Mashed potatoes had an internal temperature of 88F. An employee said the mashed potatoes were placed on the stove top less than four hours earlier. The food was discarded.

  • Containers of salsa with an expiration date of Nov. 29, kraut with an expiration date of Nov. 24,  marinara sauce with an expiration date of Dec. 3 and cooked chicken with an expiration date of Nov. 25 were on the cook line. All were past their seven-day discard dates and were discarded.

Salsitas Mexican Restaurant, 1004 N. 24th St., Phoenix

  • Raw chicken was stored over raw pork, and raw chicken was stored with raw beef in the walk-in refrigerator. The manager was asked to separate the raw chicken and put the raw chicken on the bottom shelf.

  • Only soap and clean water were in the three-compartment sink. An employee washed and rinsed containers and utensils going through the sanitizing step in the three-step cleaning process. Employee set up the three-compartment sink and re-cleaned all containers and utensils.

  • Cooked beans were stored on the food prep bench with an internal temperature of 109F. An employee said the cooked beans were prepared less than one hour before inspection. An employee was instructed to reheat the beans to 165F.

  • An employee disposed of mop water and wastewater onto the ground. The manager said mop water would only be disposed in the mop sink.

Look 'em up: Check your favorite dining spots in The Republic's new restaurant inspection database

Grade A restaurants

Phoenix

  • Greekfest Restaurant, 1940 E. Camelback Road, Phoenix

  • Pachanga Disco Bar, 4434 N. 19th Ave., Phoenix

  • Samarkand Restaurant, 7823 N. 19th Ave., Phoenix

  • Pueblo Viejo Restaurant, 16615 N. Cave Creek Road, Phoenix

  • Bharatiya Ekta Mandir, 2804 W. Maryland Ave., Phoenix

Scottsdale

  • Handlebar-J Restaurant, 7116 E. Becker Ln, Scottsdale

  • Corleone's Authentic Philly Steaks, 15040 N. Northsight Blvd., Scottsdale

  • Canton Dragon, 10190 N. 90th St., Scottsdale

  • Cafe Paris, 15125 N. Hayden Road, Scottsdale

  • Famiglia, 17025 N. Scottsdale Road, Scottsdale

East Valley

  • Angie's Lobster, 3131 E. Queen Creek Road, Chandler

  • Szechwan Tasty, 745 N. Gilbert Road, Gilbert

  • Smoking Tiger BBQ, 1919 S. Gilbert Road, Mesa

  • The Tipsy Egg and The Uncommon, 1 E. Boston St, Chandler

  • Mercado Y Carniceria El Rancho, 303 E. Southern Ave., Mesa

West Valley

  • Sushi Love, 1721 N. Dysart Road Suite, Avondale

  • Times Square Italian Restaurant, 5775 W. Bell Road, Glendale

  • Waffletto, 406 N. Litchfield Road, Goodyear

  • Maskadores Taco Shop, 2075 S. Miller Road, Buckeye

  • Restaurant Oaxaqueno Tierra Del Sol, 9310 W. Van Buren St., Tolleson

Source: Maricopa County Environmental Services

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This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: 7 metro Phoenix restaurants have 34 health violations in inspections