Old queso. Moldy soda machine. Cook didn’t wash. Wichita KS restaurant inspections

Amy Renee Leiker
·7 min read

Four convenience stores, two restaurants and a hotel in Wichita were out of compliance during food safety and lodging inspections conducted by the Kansas Department of Agriculture last week.

Their problems include hand-washing sinks that didn’t have hot water for various reasons, a cook that didn’t wash their hands after handling raw chicken, food on a hotel breakfast buffet that wasn’t kept hot or cold enough, cracked and broken cooking equipment, a moldy or mildew-contaminated soda machine, old queso and mole sauce and raw meats that were stored with ready-to-eat foods, according to inspection reports.

Information about the seven establishments and a summary of their violations appear below. The list was compiled Feb. 14 and includes inspections conducted in Sedgwick County from Feb. 4-10.

More than 50 establishments passed inspections during that time. Some may have been non-compliant in previous weeks.

Owners or managers can contact Eagle reporter Amy Renee Leiker at 316-268-6644 or aleiker@wichitaeagle.com to comment on inspection results that appear in this story.

More details about the inspection results are in The Eagle’s searchable database of non-compliant restaurant and hotel inspections at www.kansas.com/databases.

How establishments fail

Most violations are minor and are corrected during an inspection.

Businesses fall out of compliance when they have too many violations, issues that can cause foodborne illnesses or when a problem can’t be fixed right away, such as bug and rodent infestations. Typically, establishments are re-inspected within 10 days.

It’s rare for a facility to shut down over a failed inspection. But it can happen due to sewage backups, pest problems, and water or power outages, among other issues. Usually, closures are temporary.

You can search food and lodging inspection results in any Kansas county at www.foodsafety.kda.ks.gov/FoodSafety/Web/Inspection/PublicInspectionSearch.aspx.

Out-of-compliance inspections

Casey’s General Store, 511 S. West St. in Wichita — One violation on Feb. 5 during a follow-up inspection. Water wasn’t hot at men’s bathroom sinks. Next inspection: March 6.

Gotta Stop, 5600 W. MacArthur in Wichita — One violation on Feb. 9 during a modified complaint inspection. No hot water at hand-washing and dish sinks. Next inspection will be in 10-15 days, according to report, but a specific date wasn’t listed.

Great Wall Chinese Restaurant, 407 E. Pawnee, Suite 101 in Wichita — Seven violations on Feb. 6 during a routine inspection. T-shirt bag and towel was sitting in sink that is supposed to be used only for washing hands, cook didn’t wash hands with soap after touching raw chicken, bowls in clean storage had food residue on them, cabbage and fried chicken weren’t kept cold enough, bus tub and bowl were broken or cracked, leaky hand-washing sinks, rusted part on mop sink, cook rinsed his hands in a sink that’s only supposed to be used for food preparation. Next inspection: Feb. 16.

Peacock Inc. doing business as KC Gas Station, 1955 S. Washington in Wichita — Two violations on Feb. 5 during a follow-up inspection. No sanitizer in store, “heavy buildup of mold/mildew on the baffle of the ice machine and on the middle soda nozzle at the soda fountain.” Next inspection: Feb. 15.

PowerJack, 1001 N. Grove in Wichita — One violation on Feb. 5 during a follow-up inspection. No hot water at bathroom sink. Next inspection: Feb. 15.

SpringHill Suites by Marriott Wichita East at Plazzio, 1220 N. Greenwich in Wichita — Five violations on Feb. 8 during a routine inspection. No paper towels at bar hand-washing sink, apples weren’t individually wrapped to protect them from contamination, several foods on the breakfast buffet weren’t kept hot or cold enough, no probe food thermometer on site, sanitizer bucket was stored in hand-washing sink. Next inspection: Feb. 18.

Taqueria La Chona, 3415 E. Harry in Wichita — Fourteen violations on Feb. 6 during a joint inspection. Raw meats were stored with ready-to-eat foods including hot dogs and cream cheese loaf, chipped and cracked spatulas in clean storage, hand-washing sink was blocked by trash can and mop bucket, trash can propped open back door which can let pests in, wiping cloth bucket didn’t have enough sanitizer in it, pork tongue and other meats weren’t kept hot enough, dishes weren’t washed with enough sanitizer, pico salsa wasn’t cold enough in refrigeration, employee didn’t wash hands after touching dirty dishes, buckets of beans and braised beef didn’t cool down to the required temperature overnight, bags of beef weren’t labeled with correct dates they were removed from freezer, employee didn’t wash hands or change gloves after touching raw egg, old mole sauce and queso sauce, old salsa de spaghetti sauce, automatic paper towel dispenser at hand-washing sink didn’t work. Next inspection: Feb. 16.

How to complain

If you see problems at a food or lodging establishment, you can file a complaint.

To notify the state about unsavory or questionable conditions anywhere that serves or sells food to the public, email kda.fsl@ks.gov or call 785-564-6767. You can also file a report at www.foodsafetykansas.org.

To report an illness you think was caused by a restaurant, food or event, contact the Kansas Department of Health and Environment at 877-427-7317 or www.foodsafetykansas.org.

Complaints about conditions at hotels and motels can be submitted at https://agriculture.ks.gov/kda-services/complaint-form/food-safety-and-lodging-complaint.

For more information about foodborne illnesses, visit www.foodsafety.gov.

These businesses passed inspections

  • Academy Sports & Outdoors, 2710 N. Maize Road in Wichita

  • At Home, 301 S. Towne East Mall Drive in Wichita

  • BD’s Mongolian Grill, 111 S. Rock Road in Wichita

  • Benny’s Burgers and Shakes, 610 N. Main in Cheney

  • Benton Elementary School, 338 S. Woodchuck in Wichita

  • BlendTech West, 2723 W. Esthner in Wichita

  • Braum’s Ice Cream & Dairy Store, 3420 N. Maize Road in Wichita

  • Buster’s Burger Joint, 1202 E. MacArthur in Wichita

  • Caldwell Elementary School, 1441 S. Edgemoor in Wichita

  • Chick’n Pop, 3233 E. Harry in Wichita

  • Chipotle Mexican Grill, 2608 N. Greenwich Court in Wichita

  • Circle Greenwich Elementary School, 3250 N. Greenwich in Wichita

  • Cracker Barrel Old Country Store, 995 E. 61st St. North in Park City

  • DD Smoke Shop & Grocery, 2290 S. Oliver in Wichita

  • Dillons Marketplace, 7707 E. Central in Wichita

  • The Donut Whole, 1720 E. Douglas in Wichita

  • El Fogon #2, 2604 N. Arkansas in Wichita

  • El Sol de Michoacan (mobile vendor/food truck), 765 W. Lincoln in Wichita

  • Emerson Biggin’s Sports Bar & Grill, 2330 N. Maize Road, Suite 100 in Wichita

  • Envision Inc., 2301 S. Water in Wichita

  • Fairfield Inn & Suites by Marriott Wichita East, 417 S. Webb in Wichita

  • Great Wall Chinese Restaurant, 410 N. Hillside, Suite 600 in Wichita

  • GreenAcres Market, 8141 E. 21st St. in Wichita

  • Hibachi Boy, 3010 E. Central in Wichita

  • IHOP, 3151 N. Rock Road in Wichita

  • J&A’s Flavored Kitchen (mobile vendor/food truck), 8130 W. 16th Court North in Wichita

  • La Tapatia Market, 1953 S. Seneca in Wichita

  • LDF Sales & Distributing Inc., 10610 E. 26th Circle North in Wichita

  • Los Aztecas Mexican Grill, 1540 E. 61st St. North in Park City

  • Malaysia Cafe, 7777 E. 21st St., Suite 150 in Wichita

  • Mo’s A-Maize-N BBQ & Grill, 5125 N. Maize Road in Wichita

  • Nifty Nut House, 537 N. St. Francis in Wichita

  • Noah’s Donut & Coffee Shop, 868 E. Grand in Haysville

  • Old Chicago Pizza & Taproom, 7626 E. Kellogg Drive in Wichita

  • Pennant Coffee & Good Company, 930 W. Douglas, Suite A in Wichita

  • Premier Food Service at Emprise Bank, 257 N. Broadway in Wichita

  • Premier Food Service at Reiloy Westland, 12260 W. 53rd St. North in Maize

  • Pho Cao, 9203 W. Central in Wichita

  • Pho Cuong, 6605 E. 37th St. North, Suite 100 in Wichita

  • Red Lobster, 555 S. West St. in Wichita

  • Sabor Latin Bar & Grille, 309 N. Mead in Wichita

  • Skate South, 1900 E. MacArthur in Wichita

  • Slim Chickens, 2313 N. Greenwich in Wichita

  • Spears Restaurant & Pie Shop, 4323 W. Maple in Wichita

  • Spice of Life, 1021 W. Maple in Wichita

  • Supplement Giant, 2556 N. Maize Road, Suite 110 in Wichita

  • Tacos Rey (mobile vendor/food truck), 1301 S. Oliver in Wichita

  • Texas Roadhouse, 2526 N. Greenwich in Wichita

  • Tortilla King, 4014 N. Hoover Court, Unit A in Wichita

  • Tractor Supply Company, 9425 W. Kellogg Drive in Wichita

  • Trader Joe’s, 1800 N. Rock Road in Wichita

  • Urban Air Trampoline & Adventure Park, 8545 W. Irving St. in Wichita

  • Vermillion Elementary School, 501 S. James in Maize

  • Village Inn, 7020 W. Central in Wichita

  • Wichita Southeast High School, 2641 S. 127th St. East in Wichita

  • Wilbur Middle School, 340 N. Tyler Road in Wichita

Note: Sometimes addresses listed — especially for mobile vendors and food trucks — are not where food is actually served to the public. Contact those establishments directly for specific service locations.