Restaurant inspections: Rodents in cookies, mislabeled sushi fish, cockroaches in Wichita KS

Eight Wichita-area restaurants and other businesses were deemed out of compliance during Kansas Department of Agriculture food safety and lodging inspections conducted Dec. 18-24.

Information about the Sedgwick County businesses and their violations, compiled Dec. 29, appears below with a summary of the problems inspectors noted on their reports. More details 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 out-of-compliance inspection results can contact Eagle reporter Amy Renee Leiker at 316-268-6644 or aleiker@wichitaeagle.com. Comments will be added to online stories. Businesses that failed are listed alphabetically at the end of this article.

More than 40 businesses surveyed Dec. 18-24 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 corrected immediately during an inspection.

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, such as pest infestations and plumbing issues.

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

Alzavino Wine Tavern, 1001 W. Douglas in Wichita — Two violations during a Dec. 20 follow-up inspection. Cited for not labeling Oreo ball desserts with their preparation dates, old sausage and cream cheese and other items in cooler. Next inspection: Dec. 30.

Family Dollar Store, 1031 S. Meridian in Wichita — Three violations during a Dec. 20 routine inspection. Cited over several packages of cookies, cereals, crackers, chips and other dry goods that had been “chewed on by rodents or have been contaminated by rodent feces,” evidence of rodent infestation including around “300 rodent droppings” on retail food shelves and nesting areas under shelving in food aisles and in paper products and pet storage shelves, rodent evidence in storage area and in hallway by the bathrooms, store didn’t shut down immediately and notify the state about its rodent problem. The business voluntarily closed over the infestation during the inspection. It reopened on Dec. 21 and is supposed to have a follow-up inspection within 10 days to verify compliance.

Hiro Sushi & Hibachi, 240 N. Main, Ste. 300 in Haysville — Seventeen violations during a Dec. 21 routine inspection. Cited over an employee who used a reusable cloth instead of disposable paper towels to dry hands after washing, employee didn’t wash hands or change gloves after touching raw shrimp, employee washed hands at a sink dedicated for rinsing dishes, thawing fish improperly, cooking utensils sitting in stagnant water, missing records tied to parasite destruction for salmon and escolar served raw in sushi, sushi rice in warmer wasn’t hot enough, garlic-in-oil paste and rice left out at room temperature, raw eggs stored at room temperature, salad dressing and cooked vegetables weren’t labeled with preparation dates, tofu wasn’t labeled with package opening date, restaurant mislabeled escolar used in sushi as white tuna, inside of freezer is “soiled with apparent mildew,” dirty and greasy equipment, no soap at hand-washing sink, dirty and greasy floors, spray bottle of bleach wasn’t labeled with contents. Next inspection: Dec. 31.

Pleasures, 4849 S. West St. in Wichita — Four violations during a Dec. 19 routine inspection. Cited for not having a thermometer that can read cold temperatures, cold water doesn’t work at kitchen sink due to a broken faucet, broken sink is the only hand-washing sink in the kitchen, no paper towels at sink. The business was in compliance during a Dec. 29 follow-up inspection.

Puerto Vallarta Mexican Restaurant, 602 N. Tyler in Wichita — No specific violations noted during a Dec. 19 reopening inspection, but the restaurant still appeared on the state’s out-of-compliance list. “A 10 day follow-up will be scheduled to verify compliance,” the report said. The business was deemed in compliance with two violations during a follow-up inspection on Dec. 29.

Pupuseria El Torogoz, 2061 S. Seneca in Wichita — One violation during a Dec. 19 follow-up inspection. Cited over foods in refrigeration including cabbage and cheese that weren’t kept cold enough due to a cooler that needed a part. Next inspection: Jan. 19.

Ruby Q’s Bar, 6305 E. Harry in Wichita — Three violations during a Dec. 20 inspection prompted by a complaint. Cited over holes in ceiling and walls in various places that were large enough to let in pests, inspector heard a mouse squeak in kitchen and saw mouse droppings including on freezer doors and behind refrigerator and freezers, mouse ran from behind freezer into part of bar, spray bottle of multipurpose cleaner wasn’t labeled. Next inspection: Dec. 30.

Senior Services Inc. of Wichita, 200 S. Walnut in Wichita — Three violations during a Dec. 20 routine inspection. Cited for meals on wheels items that had been prepared for delivery weren’t kept hot enough, no testing strips on site to measure concentration of sanitizer using for washing dishes, “accumulation of dead cricket nymphs” and dead cockroaches in dry storage area and under dishwasher. Senior Services told the inspection that the facility had been treated recently and that “a population of roaches had been discovered in the warewashing machine’s heat booster.” Next inspection: Dec. 30.