Bugs, 49-day-old greens, ‘gross’ conditions at Wichita-area restaurants, school
AI-generated summary reviewed by our newsroom.
- Inspections in Sedgwick County flagged eight establishments for health violations.
- Inspectors recorded pests, expired produce, temperature and sanitation failures.
- State requires prompt corrections, reinspections within days and complaint channels.
Cockroaches, “gross and unsanitary conditions” in a food preparation area, filthy kitchens, meat and vegetables that were too old to serve safely, water leaks, contamination risks, gnats and fruit flies, old jam and more are among violations state 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. Eight restaurants and other businesses were non-compliant with state regulations from Sept. 28 through Oct. 4.
Inspectors found few or no violations at 60 other locations deemed compliant with food safety and lodging rules.
Kansas Department of Agriculture inspections are meant to protect the public from foodborne illnesses and other health risks. Locations can fail if they have too many problems, certain types of violations or issues that can’t be fixed right away.
Violations are common. Most of the time, businesses 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. Issues that may take longer to correct include pest infestations, power outages and plumbing problems.
It’s rare, but a business may be temporarily shut down over violations.
Places that fail are usually reinspected within 10 days.
The list in this report was compiled on Oct. 9 using information available from the state on that date. It covers Sedgwick County only.
But you can search food safety and lodging inspection results elsewhere in Kansas at https://foodsafety.kda.ks.gov/FoodSafety/Web/Inspection/PublicInspectionSearch.aspx.
Out-of-compliance inspections
Andale High School, 700 W. Rush in Andale — Four violations on Sept. 29 during a routine inspection. Oranges were moldy and spoiling, bowls of apples were not protected from contamination, pizzas were left out at room temperature instead of being refrigerated, several foods were held beyond the seven-day limit including ham (11 days), cabbage mix (11 days) and cut greens (49 days). Next inspection: Oct. 9.
Discount Cigarettes, 2160 S. Broadway, Suite 110 in Wichita — Twelve violations on Oct. 3 during an inspection that was a follow-up to an administrative order. Knife stored on rusty water heater, no food thermometer available, no sanitizer test strips available, heavy buildup in three-compartment sink and on fryer basket, no sanitizer available, hand-washing sink was connected to mop sink through non-food grade hose with leaking backflow preventer, repeat violation for no hand soap at new hand-washing sink, no paper towels at hand-washing sink, buildup on floors and along baseboards throughout food preparation area, failure to cease operations despite imminent health hazard of “gross and unsanitary conditions” in the food preparation area. Next inspection: Dec. 13.
Dollar Plus Grocery & Smoke Shop, 1341 N. Grove in Wichita — Six violations on Sept. 30 during a complaint inspection. Employee handled dirty dishes then clean dishes without washing hands, moldy and spoiling produce for sale, apples were not protected from contamination, mashed potatoes and mac & cheese were not kept hot enough, no food thermometer available to measure temperatures of cold items, food thermometer stored with grease and food debris on probe. The business was in compliance during a remote follow-up inspection on Oct. 3.
El Agave Mexican Restaurant, 3236 N. Rock Road in Wichita — Seven violations on Oct. 3 during a complaint inspection. No written plan to clean up vomit or diarrhea, bottle of Blue Curacao with fruit flies inside, employee touched sliced lime for customer drink with bare hands, queso and carnitas were not kept hot enough, 15-20 gnats observed in kitchen landing on food preparation table and tomato boxes, grease and food debris buildup under kitchen equipment, can of Raid Ant & Roach spray that was not safe for use in commercial settings found in kitchen. Next inspection: Oct. 13.
Napoli Italian Eatery, 7718 E. 37th St. North, Suite 500 in Wichita — Eight violations on Sept. 30 during a routine inspection. No written plan for cleaning up vomit or diarrhea, shell stock tags for mussels were missing the last sale/serving date, raw ground beef stored above raw mussels in cooler, meatballs and tomato soup were not kept hot enough, old dill jam, restaurant had no records documenting required information for sous vide cooking, plastic containers with sticker residue and slicer with food debris stored as clean, unlabeled chemical spray bottles. Next inspection: Oct. 10.
Old Chicago Pizza & Taproom, 300 N. Mead, Suite 100 in Wichita — Two violations on Oct. 3 during a modified complaint inspection. Live juvenile roach found in crevice between wall and shelf in dough preparation area (roach activity noted on past two reports), grease and food debris buildup under and between equipment throughout facility. Next inspection: Oct. 13.
QuikTrip, 1500 S. Maize Road in Wichita — One violation on Oct. 1 during a complaint inspection. Approximately 50 fruit flies observed throughout establishment (majority near hot water heater by restrooms), one house fly observed inside doughnut case. Next inspection: Oct. 11.
Spangles, 410 E. 47th St. South in Wichita — One violation on Sept. 29 during a follow-up inspection. Canned mushrooms and garlic butter marked to be discarded at 3 p.m. were still in use at 3:25 p.m. Next inspection: Nov. 29.
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.
