Mold, old food on ‘clean’ slicer, no permit: a Coral Gables coffee bar fails inspection

Coral Gables coffee bar that’s tucked into the heel of a commercial building had a high rise pile of problems that included mold, ants and equipment not properly cleaned and sanitized.

That’s all according to the Florida Department of Agriculture inspection from last Wednesday’s visit to Araguaney Coffee Bar, 2100 Ponce de Leon Blvd., Suite 101.

Araguaney is classfied as a “specialty food shop,” therefore gets inspected by the Florida Department of Agriculture. Failing those inspections doesn’t close a place down, unlike restaurant inspections by the Florida Department of Business and Professional Regulation.

READ MORE: Sewage backup and odors among the restaurant filth from Miami to Palm Beach

Department of Agriculture inspectors can put Stop-Use Orders on areas of the establishment, however, such as what happened at a Broward Infiniti dealer’s customer food service area recently.

READ MORE: Inspector sees rodent-chewed chip bag in a Broward Infiniti dealer’s food service area

Here’s a selection of the problems Inspector James Zheng found, some of which were corrected, but only after Zheng noted them:

▪ Araguaney doesn’t have a food permit. “Inspection requirements have not been met to obtain a food permit.”

▪ The handwashing sink in the men’s restroom used by Araguaney’s employees, reached through the building’s lobby, didn’t have hot water.

▪ The tongs first used to grab empanadas at 8 a.m. weren’t cleaned after being used for more than four hours.

▪ “Deli slicer used and cleaned earlier today found with food residue on the back of the slicer blade, on the blade underneath the blade guard, and on the meat grip.”

▪ In the food service area, “no chlorine sanitizer available to sanitize food contact equipment and utensils,” which led to a citation of “food equipment and utensils found not sanitized before use and after cleaning.”

Proper food safety dictates food be kept either cooled under 41 degrees or warmed over 135 degrees. Araguaney had food right in the middle of the bacteria zone — ratatoulli empanada at 90.8 degrees, impossible beef empanada at 87.9 degrees, and a beef empanada at 84.9 degrees. All got tossed out.

▪ Chocolate cakes in the reach-in cooler were mystery chocolate cakes. They didn’t have labeling information. The invoice didn’t say anything about who made the cakes. They didn’t even say “eat me.”

“Food permit information could not be verified. Cakes could not be determined to come from an approved source.” Trashed.

In the food service area, “Multiple small ants observed walking along the wall by hand sink.”

▪ For those who like ice in their coffee...“Black, mold-like growth observed on the top left and right corners of the ice making portion of the ice machine and along the top plastic bar located above the ice making portion of ice machine.”