Meat in stagnant water, rodent feces, food on floor at Wichita KS restaurants, hotels
Raw meat thawing in stagnant water, foods stored directly on the floor, rodent feces, workers who didn’t wash their hands, missing smoke detectors, dirty kitchens and leaky sinks are among violations Kansas Department of Agriculture inspectors discovered during recent food safety and lodging inspections in the Wichita area.
Each week, The Eagle adds to its searchable database of failed inspections from Sedgwick County. Thirteen restaurants, hotels and other businesses were non-compliant from Feb. 16-22.
Inspectors found few or no violations at more than 20 other businesses deemed compliant with food safety and lodging rules.
Inspections are meant to protect the public from foodborne illnesses and other health risks. But violations are common.
Businesses can fail an inspection if they have too many problems, certain types of violations or issues that can’t be fixed right away. Most of the time, they correct issues in front of an inspector. Examples of things that can be addressed immediately are serving food that’s more than a week old, employees mishandling ingredients and dirty kitchens.
But sometimes issues take longer to correct, like pest infestations, power outages and plumbing problems. It’s rare, but a business may temporarily shut down over violations.
Places that fail are usually reinspected within 10 days.
The list in this story was compiled on Feb. 27 using information available from the state on that date. The list contains places in Sedgwick County. You can search food and lodging inspection results elsewhere in Kansas at https://foodsafety.kda.ks.gov/FoodSafety/Web/Inspection/PublicInspectionSearch.aspx.
Out-of-compliance inspections
Burger King, 4220 E. Harry in Wichita — One violation on Feb. 20 during a complaint inspection. Ice cream in the machine was not cold enough. Next inspection: March 2.
Chipotle Mexican Grill, 2608 N. Greenwich Court in Wichita — One violation on Feb. 21 during a routine inspection. Soda carbonators were leaking a clear liquid from the backflow prevention vent cap. Next inspection: March 3.
Coratel Inn & Suites Wichita West Airport, 658 S. Westdale Drive in Wichita — A total of 12 violations on Feb. 17 during follow-up inspections for both food and lodging. Violations include a leaking hose on a spray nozzle, no paper towels at the kitchen hand-washing sink, no evacuation diagrams in motel rooms, no emergency management plan, no sign alerting guests that the motel is pet friendly, emergency light in a stairwell doesn’t work, no records showing smoke detectors or carbon monoxide detectors are checked every six months, no smoke detector in Room 312 or laundry room, no single-use gloves in laundry room, no paper towels in lobby bathroom, no carbon monoxide detector in laundry room. Next inspection: April 17.
Deano’s Grill & Tapworks, 9747 E. 21st St., Suite 101 in Wichita — Ten violations on Feb. 17 during a routine inspection. Violations include sticker residue and food debris on containers that were supposed to be clean, no soap or disposable paper towels at the bar hand-washing sink, bottle of cleaning agent wasn’t labeled, several foods including milk and cheese weren’t held at safe temperatures, the restaurant was using a plastic cup instead of an ice scoop in its ice machine, cracked and chipped containers, leaky faucet, garlic oil was left out at room temperature, bottle of Bloody Mary mix was stored in ice used for drinks. Next inspection: Feb. 27.
Kentucky Fried Chicken, 611 E. 47th St. South in Wichita — Four violations on Feb. 17 during a routine inspection. Violations include overly hot water at kitchen hand-washing sink, fryer baskets in sanitizing sink were still soiled with chicken debris, buildup of grease and food debris in kitchen near fryers, no cleanup plan for vomiting or diarrhea. Next inspection: Feb. 27.
Lalo’s Express, 2051 S. Seneca in Wichita — Five violations on Feb. 21 during a follow-up inspection. Violations include raw eggs stored above lard in cooler, cooked beans and cooked potatoes were not cooled properly, taquitos and salsa weren’t cooled properly, containers of potatoes and cooked meat weren’t labeled with their preparation dates, “significant leak” at kitchen hand-washing sink caused a slipping hazard for employees. Next inspection: March 10.
Los Aztecas Mexican Grill, 1540 E. 61st St. North in Park City — Six violations on Feb. 20 during a routine inspection. Violations include tamales and cooked chicken that weren’t labeled with their correct preparation dates or were missing dates, bucket of cooked black beans wasn’t labeled with its preparation date, raw chicken was stored above raw beef, refried beans weren’t kept hot enough, kitchen’s primary hand-washing sink didn’t work, no soap at bar hand-washing sink. Next inspection: March 2.
New Paradise Biryani Pointe, 1648 S. Rock Road in Wichita — Ten violations on Feb. 20 during an inspection that was a follow-up to an administrative order. Violations include employee washing raw meat at the mop sink, raw meat “thawing inside of stagnant water,” containers of raw onions and sauce stored on floor, bags of flour and rice stored on ground in spice shed, tubs of cooked chicken and cooked spinach weren’t labeled with their preparation dates, employee washed hands at a sink dedicated for another purpose, dried rodent droppings on the floor in the dry storage area and among a pile of seasoning on the floor, buckets of cream sauce weren’t kept cold enough, spices spilled on spice shed floor can attract pests, raw eggs stored above cooked spinach, plastic containers were blocking a kitchen hand-washing sink. Next inspection: April 20.
Old Tokyo Steakhouse, 6821 W. Taft in Wichita — Four violations on Feb. 17 during an inspection that was a follow-up to an administrative order. Violations include fried rice that was not cooled properly, cheesecake wasn’t kept cold enough, raw steak was stored above a bowl of salad mix, buildup of dirt and grime including eggs shells and lobster tails was “under almost every single hibachi grill.” Next inspection: April 17.
Red Roof Plus Wichita East, 7335 E. Kellogg Drive in Wichita — Four violations on Feb. 17 during a follow-up inspection. Violations include failing to keep a disinfectant log daily for the pool, no carbon monoxide detectors or fire alarms in basement laundry room or boiler room, no emergency management plan available to employees. Next inspection: March 17.
Slim Chickens, 2313 N. Greenwich in Wichita — Seven violations on Feb. 22 during a routine inspection. Violations include employees not washing hands with warm water, plastic containers in clean storage had sticker residue on surfaces that touch food, water was not hot enough at sinks, the restaurant didn’t cease operating and notify the department of agriculture about the lack of hot water, an employee handled clean dishes without washing their hands, macaroni and cheese and gravy weren’t kept hot enough, waffle batter wasn’t labeled with its preparation date. The next inspection date wasn’t listed.
Taco Shop, 427 N. Hillside in Wichita — Two violations on Feb. 17 during a routine inspection. Violations include a cleaning chemical stored with spray nozzle pointing at food, water wasn’t hot enough at hand-washing sink near drive-thru line. Next inspection: Feb. 27.
Tianluo Bistro, 11309 E. Kellogg Drive, Suite 200 in Wichita — Nine violations on Feb. 21 during an inspection that was a follow-up to an administrative order. Violations include an employee washing hands at the wrong sink, employee didn’t dry hands with paper towels, employee didn’t sanitize bowl after washing it, employee wiped his face and scratched his eye after washing hands, raw eggs stored above containers of cooked chicken, employee didn’t use soap to wash hands, employee didn’t wash hands or change gloves after handling raw fish, “excessive build up of hanging food debris” on shelves in walk-in cooler where there were open containers of food, no paper towels at hand-washing sink. Next inspection: April 21.
Where 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 complaint at www.foodsafetykansas.org.
To report an illness you think was caused by a restaurant, food or event where food was served, 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 www.agriculture.ks.gov/public-resources/comments-complaints/lodging-complaint.
For more information about foodborne illnesses, visit www.foodsafety.gov.
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.
The violation summaries were compiled and drafted with the help of AI tools. They were fact-checked for accuracy and edited by Wichita Eagle journalists.
