Dirty dining: Flies prompt follow-up visit for Lakewood Ranch restaurant

Florida’s Division of Hotels and Restaurants routinely inspects restaurants, food trucks and other food service establishments for public health and cleanliness issues.

During the most recent inspections in Manatee County, restaurants were cited for problems including flying insects, dirty equipment and food employees working without hair restraints.

Here is what inspectors found.

Libby’s Neighborhood Brasserie, 8445 Lorraine Rd., Lakewood Ranch

• An inspector observed live flying insects throughout the establishment. There were approximately 21 flying insects in a dining room and bar area and approximately six flying insects in the kitchen.
• There was an accumulation of encrusted food debris on/around a mixer head.
  
  
• Shellfish tags were not marked with the last date that the seafood was served and not stored in chronological order.
• There was no source identification tag for a container of mussels on the cook line. A stop sale was issued.
• One or more cutting boards were stained/soiled.
• Access to two employee handwash sinks was blocked. Corrective action was taken.
• No paper towels were provided at an employee handwash sink.
• No test kit was at hand to measure the strength of sanitizer in use for warewashing.
• Proof of required training was not available for some employees.
• Walk-in cooler gaskets were soiled.
• Reach-in cooler gaskets were soiled.
• A walk-in cooler had an unsealed concrete floor.
• Chicken was thawing under dripping water (potentially hazardous foods must be thawed completely submerged under running water). Corrective action was taken.
• There was old food stuck to utensils that had been cleaned.
• Ice buckets were stored on the floor.
• Food was stored on the floor in a walk-in freezer and in the kitchen.
• An employee was preparing food without a hair restraint.
• Employee drinks were stored in a server area. Corrective action was taken.
• Hood filters were soiled.
• A follow-up inspection was required. The restaurant met inspection standards during a follow-up visit two days later.

Tandoor Fine Indian Cuisine, 8453 Cooper Creek Blvd., Bradenton

• The interior of an ice machine was soiled.
• A soda gun was soiled.
• Multiple food items in a walk-in cooler were not date-marked.
• An employee handwash sink at the bar was not accessible.
• Proof of required training was not available for some employees.
• A wall on the cook line was soiled.
• An employee drink was stored with food to be served to customers. Corrective action was taken.
• Food was stored on the floor in a walk-in freezer.
• The floor was soiled in a dish area.
• A walk-in cooler fan cover was soiled.
• An employee was preparing food without a hair restraint.
• The ceiling and vents over the cook line were soiled.
• Hood filters were soiled.
• The restaurant met inspection standards.

Editor’s Note: According to the Florida Department of Business & Professional Regulation, these reports are a “snapshot” of the conditions present at the time of the inspection and are public record. The agency is required to inspect every licensed restaurant at least once per year, but new and “high-risk” establishments tend to be inspected more frequently.

When an emergency shutdown order is given by an inspector, it must first be reviewed and approved by agency supervisors. In order for a business to reopen, an inspector will continue visiting the establishment daily until compliance is met. Some citations may include a financial penalty. Inspectors may also respond to complaints, which can be filed here.

The Bradenton Herald’s weekly dirty dining reports list restaurants where inspectors found issues that might concern the average diner — such as unsafe food temperatures, employee handwashing issues or moldy drink machines — regardless of whether or not the businesses passed inspection.