Food for Thought Report 3.7 - KCBD NewsChannel 11 Lubbock

City Health Inspectors were busy checking out nine food establishments in the county this week, and 50 places here in the city. It looks like a couple of Lubbock schools are making the grade, and inspectors ventured out into the county to see what they might find.

The cafeteria at Hodges Elementary turns in a perfect score with no critical violations. So does Monterey High School, they're also a NewsChannel 11 Food for Thought Top Performer.

Taking a trip out into the county, inspectors also found several perfect scores at an Idalou grocery store. Thriftway at 902 Frontage Road earns four top performances with zero critical violations in their frozen foods, dairy, fresh meat, and produce departments.

Also in the Idalou area, no bad apples but a very good one, perfect in fact. Apple Country is located four miles east of Highway 62/82 earns a perfect score, making them a NewsChannel 11 Food for Thought Top Performer.

Now it's time to see what they found in restaurants inside the city limits. Our first restaurant is just a week old, but off to a sizzling start. Tino's Family Restaurant at 4001 34th St. has a perfect score, and that makes them a NewsChannel 11 Food for Thought Top Performer.

"It takes a lot of team work to make it work," says owner Tino Tijerina. Owner Tino Tijerina says teamwork, and a strict cleaning schedule are already in place at his restaurant, which serves Mexican favorites like nachos and enchiladas, as well as popular down home dishes like burgers and chicken fried steak.

Tijerina says his place may be brand new but he's been in the restaurant business for years, and he know what he wants to give his customers before they even take a bite. "Prompt service, friendliness, a clean atmosphere, that's what I would expect when I go to a restaurant and I look at it as when my customers come in here they eat with their eyes, that's what you're going to be critiqued on," said Tijerina.

Our next three top performers can all be found inside South Plains Mall at 6002 Slide Road. Frullati Cafe' is a repeat top performer with zero critical violations, Tropik Sun Fruit & Nuts is another repeat top performer with a perfect score. Great American Cookie is also inside the mall, and they're also a NewsChannel 11 Food for Thought Top Performer.

Rounding out the list of top performers is D&G Catfish located at 4701 Interstate 27, they also received a perfect score.

Now on to this week's low performers, beginning with Delhi Palace at 5401 Aberdeen. Inspectors found four critical violations.

• A hand sink not mounted in a sanitary manner.
• Also noted a soiled soap dispenser and unsanitary dispensing of paper towels.
• The faucet in the men's room was damaged.
• Inspectors also found raw chicken stored above beef and cooked chicken. There was date marking system in use. Food containers were found to be damaged and soiled, a cutting board and bulk food containers were also found to be soiled.

Other violations included a damaged and heavily soiled freezer door, stored food left uncovered, utensils stored in food products in a refrigerator, a damaged and soiled broom, damaged and soiled ceiling tiles, soiled equipment including a stove, grill, storage shelves, boxes, and a microwave, unnecessary items stored on the premises and soiled fans, light switches and floors.

Management at Delhi Palace says inspectors came at a very busy time and that all violations have been corrected.

Our next low performer is Taco Villa at 1911 50th St. Inspectors found four critical violations. Violations including:

• Cold food being held at improper temperatures. Shredded cheese was found at 50.6 degrees. Cold food should be held at between 41 and 45 degrees or cooler.
• There was also improper handling of ready to eat foods. Inspectors found employees using bare hands to handle food, a utensil or hand sanitizer should be used.
• There was an improper date marking system being used. Some foods were not properly date marked, and cooked ham and sausage had no date mark.
• A toxic item was also found open and on the food prep table. Other violations include wiping cloths not properly stored, and coats stored in the kitchen area.

The manager at Taco Villa said all violations have been corrected.

Our last low performer is Quizno's at 3207 50th St. with four critical violations. Violations including:

• Cold food found at potentially hazardous temperatures. Salami was found at 49 degrees and chicken salad was found at 47.7 degrees. Proper temperatures for cold foods is between 41 and 45 degrees or cooler.
• Employees were found not washing their hands prior to putting on gloves or after changing job duties.
• A hand sink was being used for other purposes besides hand washing, and the sink was found to be heavily soiled.
• Inspectors also found inaccurate date marking. Meatballs and chicken soup were found with no date mark. There was an expired date mark on a product in the cooler.

Other violations include improper storage of wiping cloths.

The manager at Quizno's told us they were not fully staffed and it was during the lunch rush when the inspector was there. He also told us all violations have been corrected.