Restaurant inspections: Flies in sauerkraut, old hot dogs, moldy food in Wichita area
Eight Wichita-area businesses were deemed out of compliance during Kansas Department of Agriculture food and lodging safety inspections conducted Sept. 4-10, reports show.
Among problems inspectors found: employees who didn’t wash their hands, old ranch sauce and hot dogs, dirty equipment, unlabeled chemicals, mildew, flies in a container of sauerkraut, and moldy strawberries.
Information about the Sedgwick County businesses and their violations, compiled Sept. 16, appears below with a summary of the problems inspectors noted on their reports. More details, including specific violation descriptions, are posted in The Eagle’s searchable database of non-compliant restaurant and hotel inspections at www.kansas.com/databases.
Business owners who want to clarify or comment on inspection results that appear in the list can contact Eagle reporter Amy Renee Leiker at 316-268-6644 or aleiker@wichitaeagle.com. Comments will be added to online stories. Businesses are listed alphabetically at the end of this article.
More than 30 businesses surveyed during the same time period passed their inspections with few or no violations. You can see those at www.foodsafety.kda.ks.gov/FoodSafety/Web/Inspection/PublicInspectionSearch.aspx.
Failing an inspection doesn’t necessarily mean a business has to close; that’s rare. Most violations are minor and are immediately corrected in front of an inspector when they’re found.
Businesses fall out of compliance with state rules when they have too many violations or certain types of problems that can increase the risk of a customer contracting a food-borne illness, or when a problem can’t be fixed right away.
When a business fails, it’s usually inspected again within 10 days.
To complain about conditions anywhere that serves or sells food to the public, email kda.fsl@ks.gov or call 785-564-6767.
Recent out-of-compliance inspections:
The Angry Elephant, 111 E. 47th St. South in Wichita — Fourteen violations during a Sept. 8 inspection listed as its first operational inspection after licensing. Cited over employee who didn’t wash hands, storing raw chicken above packages of tortillas in cooler, brisket stored at room temperature, grilled vegetables and hot links weren’t kept warm enough, refrigerated foods including lettuce and potato salad weren’t kept cold enough, old ranch sauce, menu missing information about risk of consuming under-cooked eggs on burgers, no probe-style food thermometer, dirty containers, dishwasher was out of sanitizer, hand-washing sink was missing pipe and wasn’t attached to wall, no paper towels at sink, chemical bottle wasn’t labeled with contents. Next inspection: Sept. 18.
Backyard Kitchen Barbecue, 1201 S. Water in Wichita — Four violations during a Sept. 6 inspection that was the business’s first operational inspection after licensing. Cited for not keeping refrigerated foods including pasta and rice cold enough, reach-in cooler wasn’t working correctly leading to inadequate refrigeration of foods including meats and side dishes, dirty food slicer, restaurant was using the wrong type of bleach for sanitizing a slicer. Next inspection: Sept. 16.
Bill’s Charcoal Grill, 2957 N. Arkansas in Wichita — Eight violations during a Sept. 8 routine inspection. Cited over employee who didn’t wash hands adequately after handling raw hamburger patties, thawing fish improperly, employee touched customer’s food with bare hands, raw steak is stored above container of cooked beans in cooler, refrigerated foods including sausage and hamburger patties weren’t kept cold enough, beans weren’t labeled with correct preparation date, pasta strainer “is soiled with a greasy black substance.” Next inspection: Sept. 18.
Corner Market, 230 S. Baltimore in Derby — Eleven violations during a Sept. 7 routine inspection. Cited for dead flies in container of sauerkraut, raw eggs stored above chocolate milk in cooler, gravy wasn’t cold enough in refrigerator, old hot dogs and breakfast sausage, baked goods including biscuits and cookies weren’t labeled with ingredient or allergen information, hot dogs and roller grill items stored in plastic T-shirt-style bags instead of food-grade containers, mildew spots on ice bin baffle, corroded and leaky soda carbonator, broken soap dispenser. Next inspection: Sept. 17.
El Pollo Dorado, 128 W. 21st St. in Wichita — Five violations during a Sept. 6 inspection that was listed as a follow-up to an administrative order. Cited for refrigerated items including steak and cheese that weren’t cold enough, dirty vegetable dicer, door to building where food is prepared was propped open where pests could get in, flies around dishes and food areas, dead flies in windowsills and on storage shelves. Next inspection: Oct. 6.
Logan’s Roadhouse, 2424 N. Maize Road in Wichita — Nine violations during a Sept. 7 joint inspection. Cited over incorrect date label on sliced deli turkey, dirty meat slicer, plumbing issue, unlabeled chemical bottles, fish thawed improperly, moldy strawberries, raw shrimp stored above meatloaf in cooler, problem with where knife was stored, white gravy wasn’t kept hot enough, refrigerated foods including sour cream and tomatoes weren’t kept cold enough. Next inspection: Sept. 17.
Riverside Cafe West, 9125 W. Central in Wichita — Twelve violations during a Sept. 7 inspection prompted by a complaint. Cited for not keeping refrigerated foods including raw and cooked meats cold enough, no consumer advisory posted about burgers that are cooked to order, no test strips for measuring strength of sanitizer, water not hot enough at sink, “accumulation of grease and grime on the wire racks above fryer and grill,” no water pressure at hand-washing sink, pitcher stored in sink, unfinished wall, no soap or paper towels at hand-washing sink, water pools in missing portions of flooring, grease and grime build up on kitchen floors. Next inspection: Sept. 17.
Wendy’s, 6404 W. Kellogg Drive in Wichita — Four violations during a Sept. 6 inspection prompted by a complaint. Cited for nacho and liquid beer cheeses that weren’t kept hot enough, refrigerated foods including tomatoes and cheeses weren’t cold enough, missing label on cheese, chemical bottle wasn’t labeled. Next inspection: Sept. 16.
