MIAMI-DADE COUNTY, Fla. — — Would you eat at a restaurant with nearly 50 violations?
The Florida Department of Business and Professional Regulation’s routine food safety inspections are intended to protect the public, but what inspectors recently found in several South Florida kitchens was alarming.
These were routine, unannounced inspections, with the exception of a complaint-based visit in North Miami Beach.
None of the restaurants were ordered to close immediately, but the high number of violations (49, 48, 47 and 31) is unacceptable.
Follow-up inspections have been ordered for all of them.
CHICKEN HOUSE #4 – 1061 NW 20TH STREET, MIAMI
49 violations – October 14 (Routine inspection without prior notice)
Inspectors documented 49 violations inside Chicken House #4 during a recent visit, one of the highest numbers recorded this year.
The inspection report described a buildup of a black and green mold-like substance inside the ice machine, fruit flies hovering around the preparation area and a stop-sale order after several foods were found at dangerously high temperatures. These include cheddar cheese at 10°C, cooked chicken at 9°C, beans at 19°C and raw meat at 14°C.
An employee informed inspectors that the food had been there since the night before.
The walls and floors were dirty with grease and debris, and the food containers, beverage dispenser spouts, and ice machine interior were dirty and slimy. Inspectors also discovered food stored outside in a portable cooler that had not been approved by the state. Employees could not explain proper disinfection procedures and the restaurant was operating with an expired license, renewed only upon the inspector’s arrival. No employees had current food safety training.
DRAGONS – 1970 NE 153RD STREET, NORTH MIAMI BEACH
48 violations – September 29 (Complaint-Based Inspection)
A consumer complaint prompted this inspection and inspectors quickly discovered the reason.
Live cockroaches were observed crawling on a prep table and a bathroom wall. Another was found dead on the kitchen floor. The storage areas were dirty and disorganized, with the walls covered in grease and dust.
Inspectors found medication bottles stored in food preparation shelves and observed an employee handling smoked salmon with bare, unwashed hands. The restaurant did not have an approved plan allowing bare-handed contact.
A stop-sale order was issued when onions were found wrapped in a non-food-grade towel, and additional stop-sale orders were issued for vacuum-packaged salmon, tuna and cream cheese made on-premises without state authorization. The establishment also smoked fish without the required process variation, which represented a repeat violation.
Food contact surfaces and containers were rusty and dirty, and knives were stored on a dirty magnetic strip. Inspectors also cited the restaurant for not having a certified food manager or a consumer warning about raw salmon and tuna on its menu.
EL CHURRASCASO BRAZILIAN GRILL – 20505 S. DIXIE HIGHWAY, CUTLER BAY
47 violations – October 13 (Routine inspection without prior notice)
Inside the Southland shopping center, El Churrascaso Brazilian Grill recorded 47 violations during a routine visit.
Inspectors found rodent droppings on syrup containers and about 20 live flying insects in the dry storage, sink and dishwasher areas. Two cans of Raid insecticide, labeled for household use, were stored on food preparation tables.
A stop-sale order was issued for cut tomatoes, feta cheese, kale and shrimp stored at dangerous temperatures. The ice maker, orange juicer, can opener and soda nozzles were covered in sludge and debris, and the inside of the oven was black with grease. The ceilings, vents, and walls throughout the kitchen were covered in dust and mold-like buildup.
Inspectors observed a knife and sharpening tools stored on a dirty shelf, a slowly draining hand sink and no soap available to employees. A worker prepared food without hair protection.
147TH AVENUE, WEST KENDALL
31 violations – October 13 (Routine inspection without prior notice)
In West Kendall, El Platoneeka was cited for 31 violations during its routine inspection.
Mold was found in the ice machine and soda dispenser, and food containers were cracked or broken. Inspectors observed raw chicken stored on top of raw pork in the walk-in cooler. Employees were repeatedly observed not washing their hands: one coughed and continued working, another drank from a bottle, and another re-entered the kitchen from outside without washing.
The kitchen sink was not working and there was no soap available anywhere.
Inspectors also documented employees’ personal items on prep tables, uncovered food, and lack of proof of required food safety training. An employee washed and rinsed kitchen utensils without disinfecting them before using them again.
The inspection noted serious deficiencies in management supervision and basic hygiene.
IN SUMMARY
Restaurants should strive for zero violations, not 49, 48, 47 or even 31.
These are not paperwork problems, but problems that can make customers sick. Mold in ice machines, unsafe food temperatures, bugs, and employees not washing their hands are clear signs of negligence and mismanagement.
All four restaurants now face follow-up inspections, but the question remains: Would you eat at a restaurant with so many violations?
When management allows these types of conditions, it says something about their priorities, and it’s not the safety of their customers.
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