CHARLOTTE, N.C. — If you're heading out for lunch or dinner, perhaps an early Valentine's Day date in Charlotte, you'll want to check the health inspection scores of any restaurant you're considering.
You never know what's going on in the kitchen, and this week's report card has a popular restaurant, food stand and a mobile food service with violations you need to be aware of.
First up is a popular sports bar, the Hickory Tavern on Providence Road right there at Waverly. They were dinged for an employee not wearing his necessary beard cover. Big, bushy beards are popular these days, and they need to be covered if you work in food prep. There's no need to get into the obvious reason why, right?
Someone else there was storing their wiping cloth around their waist, perhaps a cloth that was wiping tables?
The grade at Hickory Tavern was a 90.5, that's a low A. Click here to view their full inspection report.
Next up, the Skyline Superette, that's a food stand. The inspector noted no managerial control over the cold hold procedures. Basically, the cold food wasn't cold enough. They were specifically calling out both the raw and cooked chicken. They were also cited for both flying and crawling inspects in the kitchen.
Their grade was an 82, that's a lower B. Click here to view their full inspection report.
Last up is Maria's Exotic Fruit, which is listed as mobile food. The person in charge had no proof of being certified in food protection. That's a big problem. Another employee handled ready to eat pork with their bare hands. Yuck!
The grade at Maria's was an 88, that's a B. Click here to view their full inspection report.