Local Mexican Restaurant Receives D Health Grade After 5 Priority Violations

A local restaurant received a D health inspection grade.Photo byMikael SeegenonUnsplash

Restaurant health inspectors around greater Phoenix have few off days. With the thousands of different restaurants around the Valley, each needing at least one visit per year. This means there are constant inspection updates coming out. While it can take a few weeks for official documentation to be released, it is always a good idea to stay on top of what restaurants are performing well, and which are performing poorly. Unfortunately, one restaurant in Mesa received one of the worst inspection grades of the year with its five Priority Violations. 

On August 1, Carniceria Los Amigos III LLC at 6102 East Main Street was visited for its annual inspection. A total of six violations were identified, five of which were of the Priority Violation level. A Priority Violation is one that directly contributes to the possibility of foodborne illness and injury. 

The first issue came with how raw food was being stored inside of the walk-in cooler. The order in which food is stored plays an important role in food safety. Food that can contaminate other foods should be stored on the bottom of a cooler or fridge, in order to prevent any drips or run-off into ready-to-eat foods. Despite this, raw eggs were stored directly above ready-to-eat bread and other items by the prep grill. At the time of the inspection, the Person in Charge (PIC) moved the eggs to the bottom shelf.

While looking over the meat slicer, raw meat was found dried and stuck to the blade. The staff informed the inspector the meat slicer had not been used since the previous day. The inspector pointed out the problem and the equipment was disassembled and cleaned on the spot. 

There was a third Priority Violation with how utensils and equipment were being sanitized. As there was not a functional washing machine on site the staff was cleaning equipment in a basin, though it held less than 10 PPM (parts per million) of chlorine. To properly disinfect dishes a PPM between 50 and 200 must be used. The staff was informed in both English and Spanish on how to do this. 

The fourth Priority Violation came when bacon-wrapped hot dogs were tested at 120 degrees. However, hot-holding food for ready-to-eat service must maintain a temperature no lower than 131 degrees. Anything below this will begin to develop bacteria. On the opposite side of the spectrum, food in the walk-in-cooler had temperatures upwards of 51 degrees. All food in a walk-in cooler must have temps no higher than 41 degrees.