Food for Thought Report 10.18 - KCBD NewsChannel 11 Lubbock

We start where many people start their day - Daybreak Coffee at 3334 66th is steaming with perfection. 

Whether you need some goodies from the grocery isle, meat market or bakery, United Supermarket at 5001 Brownfield Road is flawless. 

When it comes to dinner, how about some barbeque? There are three BBQ spots at the top this week.

Bigham's Smokehouse at 4302 19th Street and Li'l Bigham's at 1823 Buddy Holly both serve up that famous flavor Bigham's is known for.

And there's a new kid on the block. Dickey's Barbeque is the fastest growing barbeque brand in America, and they opened their new home at 5412 Slide Road just more than a week ago.

The fair may be long gone, but you can still be in Corn Dog Heaven. They're a top performer inside the South Plains Mall.

If your taste buds are tempted by Thai cuisine Bangkok Thai Restaurant serves up hefty portions of perfection at 4624 34th.

If you have someone else to do all the cooking, My Lips Are Sealed at 4411 19th Street is once again perfect.

We wrap up this Food for Thought top performer list with a sweet stop. Cookies by Design at 3310 82nd is our final top performer.

Food for Thought 10.18 Here is a complete list of the restaurants and their violations for the week ending on 10/18/07.

Now to our low performers.

We begin at Spanky's at 811 University where general manager Josie Garcia invited us inside the kitchen of this previous top performer to explain their six critical violations.

• Deli meat was above 41 degrees.

"What we do with our turkey and ham, we take it, put in on the 350 grill, cook it, melt cheese on it then we serve it to the public. To put it in perspective, it's like if you went to a party and ate off a party tray. It's nothing dangerous in the temperature it was in."

• An employee dipped their hands into a bleach solution instead of washing them in a sink.

"Previously, seven years that I've been here, that's been fine. It is considered a sanitizer, but I will comply with the health department. It's been posted: wash, brush, dry and then sanitize."

• An employee was not wearing gloves.

"We've talked to all our employees about it."

• The restaurant needs to have a certified food manager.  

"I was not aware that I had to be certified. I have an old certification from prior to this, but I'm taking care of it right now. So in 30 days when the inspector returns I'll have my certification."

• Employees were not using the correct type of thermometer for thin foods.

"We have a new rule that the health department has, and it's for this digital thermometer which I got for my birthday thank you very much."

• A can opener was dirty. And a bucket of dirty water was on a food contact surface.

"We bring our buckets out, and we clean everything down so it will be nice and spotless, but the inspector informed us that's not acceptable, and it should be on the floor. So that's been corrected, and we'll never do that again."

Josie says all violations have been corrected.

"I would like to say thank you for giving me the opportunity to come on and say to Lubbock, I'm sorry, but we do our best to serve you the best food possible, and everybody knows that we have great fried cheese and the best turkey and Swiss you've ever eaten."

The report shows most violations were corrected at the time of the inspection.

The other three low performers each had six critical violations as well.

Next we head to The Cotton Patch Cafe at 6810 slide road.

• Several cold food items, including; steak, fish, chicken and cooked vegetables were above the safe temperature of 41 degrees.
• Employees were not wearing gloves.
• Toxic items were stored next to dishes.
• The restaurant was not using a digital thermometer.
• Several items in the kitchen were dirty, including; silverware bins, plates and the microwave.
• Cotton Patch Café needs to post a warning about the hazards of eating under-cooked meats.

Management did not return our phone calls. The report shows most violations were corrected during the inspection.

Now to George's at 5407 4th Street.

• Multiple cold foods were not 41 degrees or colder. Inspectors noted that the walk-in refrigerator was holding at 50 degrees.
• Blood from an open package of meat leaked onto a bag of hash browns.
• The restaurant does not have a certified food manager.
• The coke machine and hand sink were leaking.
• Employees were not using the correct type of thermometer.
• There was no advisory about the consumption of under-cooked eggs.

The assistant manager tells us everything has been corrected. According to the report, one of the violations was corrected while the inspector was there.

And our last low performer is El Gallito at 914 E. 34th Street.

• Rice was above 41 degrees.
• Sliced sausage was not at least 135 degrees.
• An employee did not wash their hands before putting on gloves.
• None of the items in the walk-in cooler were date-marked.
• The restaurant does not have a certified food manager.
• The restaurant does not have a digital thermometer & the thermometer in the walk-in cooler was not accurate.

According to the report several of the violations were corrected during the inspection. Management says all their violations have been corrected. They tell us that a manager will take the certified food test in November.