Food for Thought Report 2.10 - KCBD NewsChannel 11 Lubbock

It's a busy week in Food for Thought with lots of critical violations but, every cloud has a silver lining and this week it comes in the form of a steak house. Kendric Turner says, "We have great steaks, we try to keep everything Texas size... huge. We try to give a great amount of food, but also specialize in quality as well."

Food for Thought 2.10 Here is a complete list of the restaurants and their violations for the week ending on 2/10/05.

Turner is the General Manager of our first top performer: Ragin' Bull Steak and Grill at 10101 Slide Road. He says what sets the brand new steak house apart is cleanliness. "We have great cooks, we have an all star kitchen cast so the food isn't a problem, great servers, that isn't a problem. We want to make sure everyone is happy as well as safe." With no critical violations at time of their last inspection, it shows. Turner says it wouldn't be possible without an excellent staff. "The employees are number one, we consider our wait staff as the 'ragin' bull.' They're the first people our guests come in contact with."

The Ragin' Bull shares the spotlight this week with Wheatley Elementary at 1802 East 28th Street. Wheatley's kitchen staff kept their kitchen in tip top shape earning them zero critical violations.

Meantime, four restaurants are trying to work out the intricacies of passing Lubbock's strict health inspections. From serious violations involving food temperatures, to proper hand washing procedures, this week's list has a little bit of everything. Starting off, our first low performer had 5 critical violations last week. Club Zoo Sports Grill was cited for:

• Foods inside cooling containers that were 60 degrees. Cold foods must be held at 45 degrees or cooler.
• Potentially hazardous ready to eat foods were not date marked.
• Two cooling units did not have thermometers.
• Two toilets in the ladies restroom were not working.
• A Heimlich chart was not available.

Four of the five critical violations were corrected on site. A manager tells NewsChannel 11 they had a plumber in that day to begin re-modeling the restrooms. They will try to be back on track for their next inspection.

Our next low performer is George's Family Restaurant at 2708 50th Street. George's had six critical violations.

• Employees were washing their hands in a three compartment utility sink.
• Unapproved drinking containers were throughout the kitchen area.
• Cracked or used eggs were being stored with whole eggs, creating a cross contamination hazard.
• The date-marking system was not accurate.
• A hand washing station had no hand soap.
• Food contact surfaces were unclean and in poor repair.

All critical violations were corrected on site. A manager declined to comment.

Third, we have another restaurant with six critical violations. Ruby Tequila's at 8601 University is also a low performer. They were cited for:

• Steamed spinach, shredded cheese, and chilies held above the required cold temperature.
• Employees not washing hands or changing gloves between job duties.
• Improper drinking containers being used and stored improperly in the kitchen.
• A moldy zucchini was found.
• Toxic items were not properly stored or labeled.
• Food contact surfaces not being cleaned or protected during storage.

All critical violations were corrected on site. A manager tells NewsChannel 11 they have made arrangements with the health department to have their kitchen staff attend food handling classes.

Last on the list this week, a low performer with nine critical violations: Mario's Drive-In at 2001 Clovis Road. Mario's violations included:

• Shredded cheese and raw bacon sitting on a table above the required cold temperature.
• Cooked sausage and potatoes well below the required hot temperature of 140 degrees.
• Raw sausage stored in a container with sliced cheese and deli meat.
• Cooked beans and hot dogs not date marked -a hand sink was blocked with a mop bucket.
• A hand washing sink was not supplied with paper towels.
• Sanitizer was not used during hand washing.
• A reach in cooler did not have a thermometer.
• Knives were heavily soiled.

All critical violations were corrected on site. A manager could not be reached for comment.