Unclean ice machines + dripping raw beef noted in February inspections in Bluffton, HHI
Four restaurants on Hilton Head and one in Bluffton were cited with “B” grades in February health inspections by the S.C. Department of Health and Environmental Control:
Cabritos Mexican Restaurant, 119 Mathews Drive, Suite C, Hilton Head, scored an 81% (B) on Feb. 14 in a routine inspection. Issues noted by inspectors included: The person in charge was not certified; a food handler was preparing food in the line hand sink; an open package of raw chorizo was stored in direct contact with packages of heat-treated beef and pork; packages of raw pork ribs were stored in the same vessel and on top of heat-treated beef; a package of raw chicken was stored directly above ready-to-eat salsas; several prepared salsas, heat-treated pork, heat-treated beef, and heat-treated lamb were held with date marks for disposal that were not consistent with food code requirements; the facility’s probe thermometer was out of calibration and reading 20 degrees different from the inspectors’ thermometer; bulk bags of food were stored on the dry storage room floor; two food handlers were working with long, unrestrained hair; two chest freezers were in poor repair with lids that were badly damaged and did not form a seal; the ladies rest room had no covered receptacle as required; and food debris was on the floors behind equipment and in dry storage areas.
The restaurant was reinspected on Feb. 20 and scored a 100% (A).
Hudson’s Seafood House, 1-C Hudson Road, Hilton Head, scored a 78% (B) on Feb. 7 in a routine inspection. Issues noted by inspectors included: An employee washed hands at the food prep sink; the outdoor bar hand sink had no soap or paper towels; an unwrapped sheet pan of raw fish fillets was stored directly over an unwrapped bucket of ready-to-eat potatoes; all ice machines had a heavy accumulation of black organic matter; issues with food held past the date mark for disposition; the menu includes a consumer advisory but does not it to all items served or offered undercooked; a bowl without a handle was being used as a scoop in ready-to-eat cocktail sauce; the three-compartment sink was not sealed to the wall; and water was leaking at the mechanical dish machine and steamer drain lines.
The restaurant was reinspected on Feb. 16 and scored a 100% (A).
La Familia, 435 William Hilton Pkwy., Suite MN, Hilton Head, scored an 81% (B) on Feb. 9 in a routine inspection. Issues noted by inspectors included: An employee went from cutting raw beef to washing utensils without washing hands in between tasks; a food handler wiped the cutting board used to cut beef and then wiped counters and other equipment with the soiled wiping cloth; raw beef was stored directly over fresh produce and tortillas; raw pork sausage, raw beef and raw shrimp were co-mingled for storage; beef had dripped into bowl of raw chopped shrimp; issues with proper hot-food holding temperatures; fire ant granules were stored under the hand sink; beef was thawing at ambient temperatures in the three-compartment sink; a crate of cactus was stored on the kitchen floor; wet and soiled wiping cloths were stored on countertops and cutting boards; tongs for serving hot food were stored wedged under equipment; and the facility did not have test kits to measure sanitizing solutions.
The restaurant was reinspected on Feb. 12 and scored a 99% (A).
New Sake Grill and Sushi, 1017 Fording Island Road, F104, Bluffton, scored an 81% (B) on Feb. 15 in a routine inspection. Issues noted by inspectors included: An employee was smoking outside and returned to working with food without washing hands; an employee was deboning salmon for sushi without the use of gloves; the kitchen hand sink was blocked by utensils; there was no soap available at the sushi bar hand-washing sink; there was not a written procedure or time stamps for four-hour use for tempura made at the sushi station and fryer baskets; there were multiple bottles of unlabeled pink solution in spray bottles throughout the facility; food was stored on the floor of the walk-in cooler; there was a rice bin stored under the drain board of three-compartment sink; there was a baking sheet pan with a tear in the material; and cutting boards throughout facility had deep scoring marks.
The restaurant was reinspected on Feb. 20 and scored a 100% (A).
Yummy House, 2 Southwood Park Drive, Suite A, Hilton Head, scored an 80% (B) on Feb. 21 in a routine inspection. Issues noted by inspectors included: A kitchen employee handled trash and then handled clean dishes without changing gloves or washing hands; raw chicken was stored directly over raw shrimp and heat-treated chicken; the chemical dish machine had no chlorine and the facility did not have test strips for sanitizing solutions; there was a heavy accumulation of black organic matter on the interior of the ice machine; a food handler washed, rinsed and stored equipment as clean without a sanitizing step; the facility did not have a date-marking system; there was chemical solution in a bucket not labeled for identification; the facility did not have a suitable probe thermometer to measure the temperature of food; shrimp and noodles were stored submerged in water; and mixed lettuce was stored in direct contact with ice.
The restaurant was reinspected on Feb. 29 and scored a 100% (A).
What the grades mean
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.
A: 88% to 100%
B: 78% to 87%
C: 77% or less
During February, DHEC recorded 204 inspections of restaurants, schools, stores and other food establishments in Beaufort County. The agency publishes the results of these health inspections on its website.
No Beaufort County restaurants were given a C in February, and no restaurants in Jasper County were given a B or a C in February.
Newer food grade decals include a QR code that customers can scan with their phones to see a food establishment’s latest report.
