2 Beaufort Co. businesses got ‘C’ in July health inspections, including upscale restaurant

Two Beaufort County businesses — one an upscale restaurant on Hilton Head Island and the other a gas station on St. Helena Island — scored the lowest letter grade of a C in July health inspections by the S.C. Department of Health and Environmental Control.

Between July 1 and July 31, the agency recorded 155 inspections of restaurants, schools, grocery stores and other food establishments in Beaufort County. DHEC publishes the results of health inspections on its website.

Inspectors hand out a grade of A, B or C, depending on the conditions found at the time. Points are docked for a variety of infractions, and restaurants have a chance to correct the problems and improve their score.

Old Oyster Factory, located at 101 Marshland Road on Hilton Head, was scored a C (75%) on July 19. The inspector cited cross contamination of chicken and seafood thawing together, equipment sanitation issues, food temperature issues, insects, and cleaning and building maintenance issues. A follow up inspection on July 21 raised the restaurant’s score to an A (98%).

Andy Love, manager of Old Oyster Factory, which is in the Coastal Restaurants and Bars restaurant group, said the inspection happened at the worst possible time, the morning of a 300-plus item delivery when doors were propped open, letting flies in and resulting in temperature issues.

“I’ve been here for 12 years, and our track record speak for itself,” Love said. “We’ve never gotten less than an A.”

Records dating back to 2019 on the DHEC website show A’s in five previous inspections for the restaurant.

The other business that scored a C in July was Parker’s at 856 Sea Island Parkway on St. Helena Island with an 86% on July 11. Inspectors noted hand-washing, temperature issues and cleaning issues. A follow-up inspection on July 21 raised the business’ score to an A (93%).

“At Parker’s Kitchen, we’re proud to serve fresh, Southern-inspired food that’s prepared on-site daily,” the company said in an emailed statement. “We immediately worked to resolve the issues at our St. Helena Island location, including making repairs to the freezer with condensation, and have new store leadership in place to ensure that this situation doesn’t happen again.”

In addition to the two C’s, two other businesses scored B’s. Those businesses, too, were able to turn their scores into As before the end of the month in follow-up inspections.

Below are the SC DHEC restaurant grades in Beaufort County from July 1-31, 2022. At the top of the chart, there are arrows to click from page 1 to page 2.