Food for Thought Report 5.23 - KCBD NewsChannel 11 Lubbock

This time in Food for Thought, inspectors checked out kitchens inside the city limits and out in county.

We start off with Shallowater Middle School, that's where inspectors found zero critical violations, making them a top performer. Shallowater Intermediate also brings in a perfect score this time with zero critical violations.

Inspectors found one critical violation at Shallowater Elementary School. Hot water was not available in the kitchen hand sink or the restroom. Shallowater High School also had one critical violation. Ready to eat foods were found to be potentially hazardous because they were not dated. That violation was corrected on site.

Now on to the restaurants. We're heading to the fishing' hole this week where we'll cast our line to bring in our featured Top Performer. River Smith's at 406 Avenue Q makes quite a catch with a perfect score, and their philosophy is simple. "Good food, clean restaurant," says manager John Corcorran.

River Smith's is no stranger to top performances and Corcorran says having a good routine in place helps them keep riding the wave. "Well we've got guidelines daily and we have rules and procedures in which we follow and we just do what it takes to keep a clean restaurant," says Corcorran.

We find the only low performance this time underneath those golden arches. McDonald's at 2433 South Loop 289 is where inspectors found 6 critical violations. Violations including:

• Cold food being held at potentially hazardous temperatures. Whole, shelled eggs were found at 71 degrees, cold foods should be kept at between 41 and 45 degrees or colder.
• There were improper hygiene practices. An open coffee cup container was found on a front counter.
• Ready to eat foods were being handled improperly; employees were found handling food with their bare hands.
• Inspectors found cross contamination potential, sausage was found stored below eggs with broken shells and food products were found stored without lids in cooling units.
• Improper date marking was also found. Products were not being rotated and discarded by the dates provided and while one container was marked, others were not marked with expirations. In and out times are required.
• Toxic items were not properly stored, some were found stored at the soda dispenser.

Other violations included an ice machine with a heavily soiled interior, a walk in freezer with a heavily soiled floor, inadequate lighting in a cooler and wiping cloths not properly stored.

The manager at McDonald's tells NewsChannel 11 that all violations have been corrected.