Livingston County restaurant inspections: Outdated meat and unsanitary conditions
HOWELL — Each month, the Livingston County Health Department inspects restaurants, schools and other facilities for unsafe food practices.
The most serious problems are considered priority violations, which present potential health hazards and should be corrected immediately. Priority foundation violations do not present immediate health hazards but should be corrected in a timely manner. Consequently, follow-up inspections and reports may be generated.
In most cases, violations are corrected, and this information isn't an indication that violations at any establishment are an ongoing issue.
For Livingston County for the month of January:
10 priority violations were found at Independence Village of Brighton Valley, 7700 Nemco Way, in Brighton
An employee at an omelet station wiped a serving utensil with a visibly soiled apron. An employee touched a two-way radio with food handling gloves. An employee touched multiple customer order forms with food handling gloves. An employee placed a customer order form on top of a plate of ready-to-eat food. Drainpipes attached to an ice machine didn't have the required air gap at the floor drain. Maintenance personnel re-secured the lines. Sanitizer levels in a sink were too low. The sink was properly refilled. Chlorine levels in a dish machine were too low. The sanitizer may have expired. Fresh sanitizer was added.
An employee didn't change contaminated food handling gloves. Staff was not using sanitizer test kits. Cooked clam chowder soup was cooling in a tall covered one-gallon container and still 155 degrees. An ice wand was used to rapidly cool the soup. Coffee and juice dispensers and surrounding areas had visible buildup. They were cleaned. Two staff members preparing omelets were not kitchen employees and hadn't been trained in food safety. During a follow-up, an inspector found the omelet station hadn't been operated since the last inspection. Management was working to address future training needs.
During the follow-up, additional priority violations were found. There was no paper towel at a wait station and dish room. Towel dispensers were refilled. Tortilla soup was cooling in a one-gallon container that was half full. It was moved to a shallow metal pan. Chicken broth was cooling in a five-gallon container that was two-thirds full and still above 135 degrees. An ice wand was used to cool it.
Six priority violations were found at El Cerro Grande, 10572 Highland Road, in Hartland
An employee didn't change their food handling gloves upon returning to the grill line. An employee wiped their glove with a cloth. Both dish machines weren't properly dispensing chlorine sanitizer. Proper levels were confirmed during a follow-up inspection. Employees didn't wash their hands between glove changes. An employee didn't wash their hands after handling dirty dishes. There was no hot water due to maintenance issues. A new water heater was installed. Sanitizer test strips were water-damaged and not useable. Staff was not using test strips to verify dish machine sanitizer concentrations. New test strips were provided.
Six priority violations were found at Lefty's Cheesesteak, 10580 Hartland Square Drive, in Hartland
Employees used food handling gloves for multiple tasks. Employees changed their gloves without washing their hands. An employee handled raw meat and touched a sandwich bun while wearing the same gloves. An employee handled raw meat and touched food-contact utensils and cooler door handles. An employee said cutting board knives were cleaned once a day and some food containers weren't being cleaned when refilled. Employees weren't fully trained in food safety. Additional training was conducted. Several foods, including cut tomato, lettuce, and sauces didn't have date labels. They were labeled during the inspection.
Three priority violations were found at Don Juan Mexican Restaurant, 9475 Village Place Boulevard, in Brighton
An employee rinsed off their food handling gloves. An employee wearing gloves placed raw beef and raw chicken on the griddle and used a spatula to flip the chicken/beef while wearing the same gloves. An employee wearing gloves handled raw beef and chicken, and a pair of tongs. They didn't wash their hands before putting on new gloves. Employees were re-educated on proper glove use. Seven gallons of milk had expired a day or two before the inspection. They were discarded.
Three priority violations were found at Hungry Howie's, 603 W. Grand River Ave., Suite E, in Brighton
A hand sink and large dough mixer were blocked by a rolling cart, and numerous items were stored in the sink. There was no soap or paper towels at the sink.
Two priority violations were found at Detroit Wing Co., 118 W. Highland Road, in Howell
Chicken wings that were par-cooked (partially cooked to be finished later) and cooled the evening before the inspection were holding at 50 degrees and above. They were being cooled in tall, covered containers instead of uncovered shallow pans. They were discarded.
Two priority violations were found at Golden House, 1241 E. Grand River Ave., in Howell
An employee handled raw chicken at the grill line, handled ready-to-eat utensils, and touched the fryer area. Raw shell eggs were stored above produce in a cooler. The eggs were relocated. An employee washed their hands using a towel from a wiping cloth bucket.
Two priority violations were found at Kerby's Koney Island, 9855 Village Place Boulevard, in Brighton
A dish machine wasn't repaired according to guidelines. A three-gallon bucket of rock/snow salt was not labeled.
One priority violation was found at 2FOG's Pub, 118 W. Grand River Ave., in Howell
A hand sink was used for discarding a beverage.
One priority violation was found at Café Services at Hanover Insurance, 808 N. Highlander Way, in Howell
No sanitizer was detected in a sink. A wall-mounted dispenser was inoperable. It was repaired by a service technician.
One priority violation was found at Dunkin' Donuts, 6801 Oak Grove Road, in Howell
The hand sink behind the donut counter didn't have any soap. It was replaced.
One priority violation was found at El Patron, 2010 E. Grand River Ave., in Howell
Several refillable spray bottles containing degreaser were not labeled. They were labeled during the inspection.
One priority violation was found at Howell Nature Center, 1005 Triangle Lake Road, in Howell
The dish machine wasn't sanitizing at the proper concentration.
One priority violation was found at Hungry Howie's, 601 W. Grand River Ave., in Fowlerville
Pre-portioned bags of cooked steak and cooked chicken wings didn't have any dates. They were dated. A container of salami and cooked steak were marked with old discard dates. Correct dates were added.
One priority violation was found at Jet's Pizza, 120 W. Highland Road, Suite 800, in Hartland
The facility was out of water test strips. They were on order and later arrived.
One priority violation was found at New Asia, 10030 Highland Road, in Hartland
An employee didn't wash their hands when returning to the grill line.
One priority violation was found at No Thai, 8367 W. Grand River Ave., in Brighton
Recently cooked potato was cooling in trays approximately six inches deep. It was spread out in a shallow layer to cool properly.
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One priority violation was found at Outback Steakhouse, 7873 Conference Center Drive, in Brighton
Soup was cooling in covered two-quart plastic containers. It was transferred to shallow pans with an ice bath to cool quickly.
One priority violation was found at Pita Way, 9290 Lee Road, Suite 103, in Brighton
Cans of chipotle were dented. They were discarded.
One priority violation was found at Saint Joseph Mercy Livingston Hospital, 620 Byron Road, in Howell
A hand sink contained fruit and vegetable debris.
One priority violation was found at Subway, 7491 W. Grand River Ave. in Brighton
A dispenser wasn't dispensing the proper amount of sanitizer at a sink.
One priority violation was found at Wong Express House, 9912 E. Grand River Ave., in Brighton
There was no chlorine sanitizer detected in a dish machine. The dish machine was primed to correct it.
— Contact reporter Jennifer Eberbach at jeberbach@livingstondaily.com.
This article originally appeared on Livingston Daily: Livingston County restaurant inspections: Outdated meat and unsanitary conditions
