A roach out of a faucet. Two dead rodents on the floor. Inspections shut down restaurants
Roaches ran strong this week on the Sick and Shut Down List. And more chains made appearances, which shows way too much laissez-faire in corporate oversight.
These reports come directly from state inspections done by the Department of Business and Professional Regulation. We don’t control who gets inspected or how strictly (although if you have a who you want inspected, click here). We report without passion or prejudice, but with more than a dollop of humor.
And we go in alphabetical order:
A Thai, 6419 Stirling Rd., Davie — OK, you turn on the kitchen handwash sink faucet and a live roach falls out. After the inspector recovers from a flashback to that ultracreepy scene in “The Craft,” is there a need to finish the inspection? Or, just stop it like a lopsided fight and declare the restaurant KO’d for the day?
We saw “Hole in ceiling above single containers in cookline” and wondered what drops in on A Thai from the sky.
Then, we saw, “three live roaches crawling from under stove in cook line. One live roach fall out from faucet in handwash sink in cookline.”
In a rarity, the dead roaches outnumber the live ones at A Thai. Quite a few piled up around the cookline. There were 10 under the cookline stove, six on bottom shelves next to a cookline refrigerator, five next to the cookline fryer, six in dry storage, three next to a kitchen freezer and one on top of the dishwasher machine.
“Light shield missing in warewashing area and one light shield broken in warewashing area.”
A Thai failed its first re-inspection on Thursday on more roaches around the cookline. “Operator killed, cleaned and sanitized area. Operator is also doing additional cleaning under stove during inspection.”
It passed re-inspection later Thursday.
Aji Carbon, 16978 NE 19th Ave., North Miami Beach — Not sure what it says that there were seven live and three dead roaches in the gasket of a reach-in cooler with ketchup, mayonnaise and salad dressing, and four dead roaches on the floor by the kitchen prep table. Did they dine before they died?
Also probably not good: a roach “crawling by clean utensils on the front counter.” Another two promenade under the front counter ice bin while one climbed the wall by the ice bin.
And there was a cleaning problem: “Accumulation of food debris/grease on food-contact surface. On the stove, and the oven.” “Food debris/dust/grease/soil residue on exterior of reach-in cooler/refrigerator.” “Wall soiled with accumulated grease, food debris, and/or dust. Throughout the kitchen and front counter areas.” “Grease accumulated on kitchen floor and/or under cooking equipment
Neither men’s nor women’s restroom door close by themselves.
Aji Carbon failed Wendesday’s re-inspection — “four live roaches, behind the front counter and under a table, three live roaches behind the reach-in cooler and one live roach crawling on the floor from the kitchen to the dining area — but passed Thursday.
Cafe Ruyi, 5300 NW. Seventh Ave., Miami — Need to put in a question to the Department of Business and Professional Regulation about this. How are “rodent droppings” a High Priority violation as “evidence of rodent activity” but dead rodents, the most obvious evidence that live rodents once ran here, only a Basic violation?
This came up again when Tuesday’s inspector saw “approximately 20-plus fresh rodent droppings on the floor between two crates with plywood that hold bags of rice in the kitchen. Observed 10-plus fresh rodent droppings on the kitchen prep table shelf. Observed 40-plus dried droppings indoor around the perimeter of the wall of the kitchen.”
The inspector also saw two dead rodents amid the droppings between the crates. No question, that’s a lot of poop cataloged. But that’s worse than actually finding Hubie and Bertie dead between the crates?
In other rodent problems, “rodent bait not contained in a covered, tamper-resistant bait station. Observed two rodent traps between the wall and the hand wash sink.”
With all this vermin activity, “a bucket of shrimp on the walk-in cooler floor” takes on more importance as a violation.
An employee “washed hands with no soap” which means the employee rinsed hands. Then again, there was no soap at the handwash sink so guess you do the best you can do.
“No mop sink or curbed cleaning facility provided.” Maybe that’s why Ruyi also got cited for “heavy amount of cooked rice and grease on the floor and on the pipes by the wall throughout the kitchen” and “grease accumulated on kitchen floor and/or under cooking equipment” and “cart with heavy amount of grease in the kitchen.”
Give Cafe Ruyi credit for bouncing back to pass Wednesday’s re-inspection.
Ichiban Sushi and Thai, 7400 N. Federal Highway, Boca Raton — This place featured another battle in the eternal Vermin Turf War, Rodents vs. Roaches.
Going to score this one for the four-legged team. The rodents marked their territory with “seven fresh rodent droppings under the reach-in cooler across grill. Four fresh rodent droppings on the floor under rice cooker in kitchen. Seven-plus fresh rodent droppings under dishmachine.”
Meanwhile, only one live roach survived while 11 dead ones dotted the kitchen.
Not the place you want the dishwasher not properly sanitizing dishes or your wiping cloths not clean or sanitized. But they were dealing with that as well as a Stop Sale dropped on the rice because it had no time marking and had been out of temperature control.
“Gaskets with slimy/mold-like buildup on glass door in reach-in cooler at cookline.” “Wall soiled with accumulated grease, food debris and our dust in dish area and cookline.”
The roaches, four dead and three live under the cookline reach-in cooler, helped Ichiban fail Tuesday’s re-inspection. Ichiban passed Wednesday’s re-re-inspection.
Kyojin Japanese Seafood Buffet, 6212 S. Dixie Hwy, South Miami — There were 10 live roaches and one dead roach by the back kitchen next to the rice container and the water heater in the kitchen area.
At least the roaches weren’t IN the rice as was the case at one place last week.
Nobody’s using the handwashing sink so long as its used for storing cleaning items and blocked by sauce containers.
“Observed cooked foods and raw foods stored inside walk-in cooler and walk-in freezer without any covered.”
Standing water by the cookline.
They got things together and back open on Thursday.
Las Carnitas, 3221 W. Davie Blvd, Fort Lauderdale — The flies on the warewashing area, the restroom and the bar area counter flitted about what looks like a general hot mess.
Not cleanliness as much as stuff and staff not working. Empanadas not covered in a reach-in freezer. Red sauce that should be uncovered while cooling was covered. Beans not properly cooling because they’re in too big a container.
“Inadequeate number of hot holding units to maintain potentially hazardous food at proper temperatures.” Cooked beef and beef soup cooled too much on the counter before being moved to a stove.
“Nonfood-grade basting brush used in food.” At least it wasn’t a paint brush. Well, probably.
Las Carnitas redeemed it self from Feb. 25’s failure on the Feb. 26 re-inspection.
Restaurant Universal Del Pueblo, 300 W. 21st St., Hialeah — Thursday, the inspector spotted “Food-contact surfaces not sanitized after cleaning, before use....Employee washing, rinsing and no sanitizing.”
That’s a problem when combined with guests from the roach part of town. “Observed approximately 10 live roaches in the kitchen in the gap between the wall and the floor next to the stove.”
And the inspector dropped several Stop Sales. In addition to having standing water, the reach-in cooler was 45 degrees Fahrenheit. Safe keeping for food that needs to be cooled is 41 degrees, at warmest. Out went white rice, beef, rice and beans, raw fish (50 degrees) and raw pork (50 degrees).
Restaurant Universal passed Friday’s re-inspection.
Sushi Sake, 14649 SW 104th St., South Miami-Dade — Apparently, the local Roach Air BnB is by the Sushi Sake dishwasher. Roaches check in...
“Observed approximately five-to-seven-plus live roaches on top of the dishwasher machine near the preparation table and the three- compartment sink in the kitchen area.”
...and they don’t check out — they mark their territory.
“Observed roach dropping all over the dishwasher machine and by the mop sink.”
The good news: there’s a working handwashing sink that’s apparently used. The bad news is “uncovered container with flour near the hand sink exposed to splash.”
Looks like the inspector gave Sushi Sake a break upon discovering the reach-in cooler, which needs to keep food under 41 degrees, measured 60 degrees inside. Instead of dropping Stop Sales on raw fish (55 degrees), cooked shrimp (58), raw scallops (58), crab (58) and raw salmon (58) that had less than an hour to cool, the inspector let an employee put all of it in another reach-in cooler “for a rapid cool.”
All this got the restaurant “Administrative complaint recommended,” which means you’re a sneeze way from being closed.
Thursday’s re-inspection found the roaches on the dishwasher turned it into a rooftop party and there were more than 15 there this time. Wonder if they poured a little out for the two roaches underneath the dishwasher who didn’t make it.
When the inspector saw the same thing Friday — along with remaining problems such as “hood filter missing from automatic fire suppression/exhaust system” — Sushi Sake got shut down.
Yellow Tail Sub & Grill, 11609 SW 216th St., South Miami-Dade — Bugs in the cooler? Not cool.
Aside from the more than eight live roaches and one dead roach inside the cookline reach-in cooler handle and gasket, there was a dead roach inside that reach-in cooler, a live one inside the reach-in cooler against a kitchen wall, one rawling on the cookline floor and six dead under the cookline grill.
The reach-in coolers also had a “build-up of mold-like substance.”
The cookline handwashing sink was a total strikeout no soap (strike one), no paper towels (strike two) or mechanical hand drying device.
Neither the walk-in cooler nor the walk-in freezer worked.
Yellow Tail got its tail together for Friday’s re-inspection.
This story was originally published March 4, 2019 at 1:14 PM.
