Roaches. Rodents. Mold dripping onto ice. Florida Keys to Palm Beach restaurant filth
After a week off, the Sick and Shut Down List returns with the usual multi-county representation, vermin and ice machine issues. So, let’s get to it.
READ BEFORE YOU WRITE OR CALL: What follows comes from Florida Department of Business and Professional Regulation restaurant inspections in Miami-Dade, Broward, Palm Beach and Monroe counties. A restaurant that fails inspection remains closed until passing an inspection.
If you see a problem and want a place inspected, contact the DBPR. We don’t do the inspections, control who gets inspected nor how strictly the inspector inspects.
We don’t include all violations, just the most moving, whether internally or literally moving (because it’s alive or once was alive). Some violations get corrected immediately after the inspector points them out. But in those situations, ask yourself, why did the violations exist in the first place? And, how long would they have remained if not for the inspection?
We report without passion or prejudice, but with two dashes of humor.
In alphabetical order...
Baroli Restaurant and Grill, 7041 W. Commercial Blvd., Tamarac: Complaint inspection, six total violations, one High Priority violation.
The hostess stand net to the bar had a match set of roaches, one living and one dead. There was another live one on a kitchen dish rack and a live one in the dining room under a table.
The inside of the microwave oven was decorated with an “accumulation of food debris.”
After a couple of roaches on the dining room floor ruined the re-inspection the next day, Baroli passed a re-re-inspection later that day.
King’s Supper Buffet, 4270 Okeechobee Blvd., West Palm Beach: Complaint inspection, 16 total violations, five High Priority violations.
Regular readers know that a buffet often brings a buffet of violations.
A little extra drip-drip of moisture on your food? “Food stored in a location that is exposed to splash/dust — cut onions and cooked noodles stored under the condenser lines in walk-in cooler.”
And, of course, the ice machine: “Accumulation of black/green mold-like substance in the interior of the ice machine/bin.”
That’s the first ice machine appearance on this list, but not the worst.
We understand trying to keep costs down these days, but inflation shouldn’t take you out of the Tupperware, Rubbermaid or Glad game. “Plastic tubs of chicken, ribs and fish stored uncovered in walk-in freezer,” unprotected from those surprise sneezes that happen when you go from room temperature to Winnipeg.
“Food container with seasoning stuck with thick accumulation of grease and food debris.”
The 15 pieces of rodent regularity were in the dry storage room under shelves near the dining room. We’re sure Pixie & Dixie respected the dry storage/dining room border.
Speaking of dry storage, “Wall soiled with accumulated grease, food debris, and mold-like growth in dry food storage area.”
Lot of food not kept at safe temperatures. Shrimp, wings, fish, sweet and sour chicken, chicken skewers, pizza, plantains, fries at the hot (lukewarm) buffet were “out of temperature for less than four hours; food overstocked; food containers too shallow and steam unable to reach food line.”
The buffet was back slinging it after passing re-inspection the next day.
Mangrove Mama’s Restaurant & Bar, 199991 Overseas Hwy., Sugarloaf Key: Complaint inspection, 23 total violations, two High Priority violations.
Sometimes, the sun-heated, birds-and-bugs, outdoor dining experience often associated with the Keys can be incongruent with the lines drawn by state restaurant inspection rules.
Take for example the issue of vermin. The inspector counted 11 pieces of rodent poop, one on a dish rinsing table and two “on shelving above food prep table that is holding uncovered flour, bread crumbs and ground plantains.”
Also, if there’s a problem with cooler or freezers, food safety problems arrive at hurricane sustained wind speed. At Mama’s, walk-in cooler doors were “in disrepair,” a Low boy reach-in cooler, a refrigerator, refrigerated drawers didn’t work and a broken ice machine had leaves inside (is that worse than a working ice machine with mold?).
“Women’s Bathroom door left open other than during cleaning or maintenance” and “women’s bathroom located inside establishment not completely enclosed with tight-fitting, self-closing doors.” How many Keys restaurants go without doors on their restrooms?
“Food-contact surface of French fry cutter soiled with food debris. Can opener blade is soiled.”
Stay out of the cracks, folks. “At the bar, observed In-use knife/knives stored in cracks between pieces of equipment.”
Mama’s passed inspection the next day.
Moon Thai & Japanese, 11071 Southern Blvd., Royal Palm Beach: Complaint inspection, eight total violations, four High Priority violations.
After five inspections over 17 days, the most recent inspection being Thursday, this place still couldn’t get a “Met Inspection Standards” from the inspector. That’s adding stories to previous levels of failure here at the Sick and Shut Down List, no small feat.
“No paper towels or mechanical hand drying device provided at handwash sink” in the men’s restroom, which is prime ew.
Stop Sales rained on food that needed to be kept under 41 degrees and usually measured at 54 degrees or higher, creating little bacteria shuttles. There were sprouts, cream cheese, cream, cooked duck, raw fish, raw beef, raw steak, butter and tofu that had been stored in the wet-Kleenex-worthless walk-in cooler.
The roaches probably didn’t mind. Of the 23 roach corpses, two were next to the sushi line. The live roaches, numbering over 29, were mainly under a flip top cooler and a cookline unit (10-plus) and inside a bag under a cookline flip top cooler.
When the inspector returned for re-inspection, there were four dead roaches, four live roaches and one repairman dealing with the walk-in-not-so-cooler.
At the next re-inspection, the bean sprouts, garlic in oil, re-hydrated mushrooms and tofu all being at 48 degrees indicated that the walk-in cooler still cooled food about as well as the Dolphins protect starting quarterbacks.
Thursday, the inspector counted 16 dead roaches and noted the sushi rice has no time marking.
They’re open. Eat at your own risk.
Kababi Cafe by Kuluck, 3828 N. University Dr., Sunrise: Routine inspection, 24 total violations, four High Priority violations.
The cutting board, soda water nozzles at bar area and the soda nozzles on the soda machine in the dining area were befouled with a “mold-like substance.”
Ordering our Honey Jack-and-Cokes with no ice because not only did we have the standard “accumulation of black/green mold-like substance in the interior of the ice machine/bin,” but there was also “interior of ice machine with mold-like substance dripping in ice.”
Six sticky fly traps in the kitchen each had 50 flies or more.
As for the vermin below, “10 or more dead roaches throughout the dining room area, under booths...two dead roaches at the dessert area, under equipment...one dead roach inside standing reach-in cooler stored with cooked rice and prepped beef kabob in the kitchen area.”
Also, there were “approximately 10 or more rodent droppings under soda boxes and CO2 tanks in the dry storage area located beside the walk-in freezer and shelves with condiments.”
Kababi passed re-inspection the next day.
This story was originally published October 21, 2022 at 4:30 AM with the headline "Roaches. Rodents. Mold dripping onto ice. Florida Keys to Palm Beach restaurant filth."
