5 Polk County restaurants fall short of inspection standards. See why
Five Polk County restaurants fell short of inspection standards from April 22 to May 5, according to state reports.
In a light two-week period, there were just 24 inspections logged by inspectors. Nineteen food vendors met standards, and nine of those were perfect their initial inspection – meaning an inspection that wasn’t a follow-up mandated by previous violations.
Among the five that fell short, there were 22 total violations, five of which were clerical in nature, such as expired licenses or food-manager certification. All were brick-and-mortar establishments – no food trucks or caterers.
View for yourself: Search inspection reports for any food vendor in Polk County
And across the county, there were no violations for rodents or insects for the period.
Not all violations that cause a restaurant to fall short are the type that would alarm the common diner. That’s why The Ledger details the violations for all such restaurants, so readers can decide.
The Florida Department of Business & Professional Regulation reminds diners that an inspection report is “a snapshot,” and is not necessarily a sign of long-term conditions at a restaurant. To see complete reports for any restaurant in Polk County, go to The Ledger’s searchable database at https://data.theledger.com/restaurant-inspections/polk.
Restaurants that fell short, and why
Manny's Original Chophouse, 210 State Road 60 W., Lake Wales: On May 2, the restaurant had 10 violations, including three high priority. Among those, the inspector placed a stop sale on 25 pounds of butter that was exposed to dripping water from a condenser in the walk-in cooler. Another was temperature-controlled food stored at greater than 41 degrees – in this case ribs that were on the cookline at 60 degrees. The last was for a whole meat roast “hot held” at less than 130 degrees – in this case prime rib sitting on a cutting board at 70 degrees.
There was one intermediate violation for no paper towels or hand-drying device at the handwash sink. And six basic violations, two of which stemming from the dripping condenser in the walk-in cooler. Among the other four, one was for missing or broken cove molding, one was for a soda gun sitting in a bucket of syrup, one was for a missing waste line at the soda gun holster and the last was for missing grout in the kitchen floor. A warning was issued and a follow-up inspection required.
April 8-21: Two Polk restaurants closed by inspectors: 1 for roaches, another for construction issues
Dundee Diner, 28089 U.S. 27, Dundee: On May 1, the restaurant had a callback for warning issued Feb. 28. In the callback, two violations remained: A damaged wall by the dry storage racks (basic), and the person in charge lacking food manager certification (intermediate). An administrative complaint was recommended and a follow-up required.
Eggs Up Brunch, 19301 U.S. 27, Lake Wales: On May 1, the restaurant had three violations, one high priority, one intermediate and one basic. The high-priority violation was for the dishmachine sanitizer that wasn’t mixed at the proper strength. The manager fixed the issue on site. The intermediate violation was for the food manager’s certification being expired. And the basic violation was for soiled hood vents on the cook line. A warning was issued and a follow-up required.
Fancy Q Japanese Inc., 5615 S. Florida Ave., Suite 115, Lakeland: On April 30, the restaurant had five violations, including two high priority. In one high-priority violation, the inspector noted an employee washing hands without soap. The issue was corrected on site. The other was for operating with an expired Division of Hotels and Restaurants license, which expired on Feb. 1. The intermediate violation was for an employee washing a container at the handwash sink. Among two basic violations, one was for a accumulation of mold-like substance in the ice machine. The other was for a case of imitation crab sticks stored on the floor in the walk-in freezer.
Ramada Inn Davenport, 43824 U.S. 27, Davenport: On April 23, the restaurant had a callback required by violations from a Feb. 13 inspection. Two violations remained from that inspection, both related to licensing and certification. The restaurant was operating on an expired license, which expired on Feb. 1. And the food manager’s certification was expired. An administrative complaint was recommended and a follow-up required.
April 1-7: Five Polk County restaurants fail to meet inspection standards. See why
Perfection
These nine food vendors in Polk achieved perfect initial inspections from April 22 to May 5. Of the nine, five are food trucks.
Silvino's Pork Rinds, mobile vendor, 2109 W. Memorial Blvd., Lakeland
Meme's Italian Ice, mobile vendor, 1263 Kathleen Road, Lakeland
Taqueria Mederos, mobile vendor, 2701 Swindell Road, Lakeland
Burger Bunker, 1360 U.S. 92, Auburndale
Tati's Cake & Coffee Shop, 1125 U.S. 17, Davenport
Experience Brazil, mobile vendor, 45000 U.S. 27, Davenport
Maritime, 302 4th St. S.W., Winter Haven
Lang's Taste of Florida Café, mobile vendor, 5900 U.S. 17-92 W, Haines City
La Perla Restaurant, 391 Berkley Road, Auburndale
March 25-31: In slow week of inspections, 1 Polk County vendor falls short of standards. 16 are perfect
Keep in mind as you read
Remember that in some cases, violations are noted are technical issues not directly linked to hygiene or cleanliness. Remember, too, that broken refrigerators, chipped tiles or fast work may add up to unintended mistakes.
Regardless, if you notice abuses of state standards, report them and DBPR will send inspectors. Call 850-487-1395.
The terminology
What does all that terminology in state restaurant inspections mean?
Basic violations are those considered against best practices.
A warning is issued after an inspector documents violations that must be corrected by a certain date or within a specified number of days from receipt of the inspection report.
An administrative complaint is a form of legal action taken by the division. Insufficient compliance after a warning, a pattern of repeat violations or existence of serious conditions that warrant immediate action may result in the division initiating an administrative complaint against the establishment. Says the division website: “Correcting the violations is important, but penalties may still result from violations corrected after the warning time was over.”
An emergency order — when a restaurant is closed by the inspector — is based on an immediate threat to the public. Here, the Division of Hotels and Restaurants director has determined that the establishment must stop doing business and any division license is suspended to protect health, safety or welfare of the public.
A 24-hour call-back inspection will be performed after an emergency closure or suspension of license and the establishment may reopen only after inspection shows that all high-priority violations that caused the suspension are corrected.
This article originally appeared on The Ledger: 5 Polk restaurants fall short of standards April 22 to May 5
