Pest Droppings, Improper Hand Washing Seen At Rockville Restaurants

ROCKVILLE, MD —Inspectors with the Montgomery County Health and Human Services Department recently cited three Rockville restaurants for critical violations of the health code.

Violations, both critical and non-critical, included failing to keep food at the proper temperatures, kitchen staff not washing their hands properly, and unidentified pest dropping seen in several locations.

All Montgomery County licensed retail food establishments are inspected by the Licensure & Regulatory Services Program. Regular comprehensive inspections include evaluating an establishment's sanitation, maintenance and food service operations. These inspections include monitoring critical temperatures and food handling procedures.

Both of the restaurants that inspectors visited on Sept. 19 and Sept. 21 were cited for critical violations of food safety requirements.

"A Critical Violation means a food safety requirement that requires immediate correction," according to the health and human services website. "Failure for immediate correction results in cessation of some or all food operations or closure of the facility until violation is able to be corrected."

Hebrew Home of GW-RING

On Nov. 1., an HHS inspector reported a critical violation at the Hebrew Home of GW-RING at 1801 E. Jefferson St. The temperature of beef noodles soup in the meat walk-in refrigerator was found to be 47F., which was higher than the required 41F cold holding temperature. To correct the violation, the item was discarded.

The inspector also noted the following six good retail practice violations that needed to be corrected within 30 days:

• "Droppings observed in multiple locations, such as, on the lower shelf of a black cart and a white cart, and on the lower shelf of a. Locations were pointed to the executive chef and persons in charge. NOTE: Clean the areas where droppings were, continue with pest control management, seal any holes or gaps to remove any access of pests.
• "Slime observed on the lip of the ice machine. NOTE: Clean
• "A cutting board observed with deep black grooves. NOTE: Replace
• "Floors observed broken in the meat kitchen around the equipment. NOTE: Repair
• "A couple of light bulbs observed burnt out in the meat kitchen. NOTE: Provide adequate light
• "HACCP plan observed missing receiving and hot holding steps for beef noodles soup. NOTE: Update. The procedures were discussed with the executive chef."

Hot Pot City

During a Nov. 7 inspection at the Hot Pot City located at 199 E. Montgomery Ave., an HHS inspector note a critical violation.

"An employee observed not washing his hands according to proper hand washing procedure after preparing raw meats, rinsing his hands only," the inspection report said. The restaurant corrected the violation.

The following good retail practice violations were also reported:

• "The hand washing sink in cook line is blocked.
• "Employees observed washing their hands in the a prep sink. NOTE: Wash hands in the hand washing sink only.
• "The sanitizer concentration of the dish washing machine observed at 10 ppm. NOTE: Ensure Chlorine concentration range 50 ppm to 100 ppm
• "Employees in cook line observed without hair restraints. NOTE: Provide as required."

Landow House

An HHS official reported on Nov. 1 that the Landow House at 1799 E. Jefferson St. had two critical violations that needed to be corrected. Both the hot and cold holding stations were not keeping food at the proper temperatures.

"Potentially hazardous foods in the warmer observed below 135 degrees F. Items were reheated to above 165 degree F.," according to the report.

"Egg salad and tuna salad in ice bath observed above 41 degrees F. (Corrected on site)"

The inspection report listed five good retail practice violations that needed to be remedied within 30 days:

• "Mop-brooms observed placed close to serving trays. (Corrected on site)
• "Two steam tables observed non-functioning (not maintaining their water temperature at 135 degrees F or above). NOTE: Repair
• "The door of the meat walk-in refrigerator observed broken. NOTE: Repair
• "Floors behind the equipment in the cook line are in need of cleaning. (Repeated violation) NOTE: Clean thoroughly
• "HACCP plan observed missing receiving and hot holding procedures. NOTE: Update. The procedures were discussed with the executive chef. "

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