Springfield

May 16, 2023

An Arby's employee who hadn't been symptom-free for 24 hours after vomiting and a Hood's Restaurant refrigerator that didn't keep food cold enough were among the findings in this week's Springfield-Greene County Health Department food inspections.

The ill employee at Arby's, 735 S. Glenstone Ave., was sent home, and "education was given" on Missouri Food Code's exclusion and reinstatement statutes. Hood's Restaurant, 1651 S. State Highway K in Bois d'Arc, was observed to have baked potatoes at a lower temperature than was safe and an upright refrigerator that was not keeping food cold enough.

Food inspections take place one to three times a year, depending on the type of food served, the population served, difficulty of food preparation and past history. Restaurants preparing food from raw ingredients are inspected more often "than convenience stores that serve only non-potentially hazardous foods, such as popcorn and soda," according to the Springfield-Greene County Health Department.

Issues found during inspection fall into either priority or non-priority violations. Priority violations impact the safety of the food, such as cross contamination between raw and ready-to-eat food, improper food temperature and poor personal hygiene and employee health. Multiple priority violations can lead to an establishment being shut down. Non-priority violations alone do not directly affect food safety, such as dirty floors, sticky tabletops or outside trash cans not being covered.

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Here are more of the food inspections from this past week:

AM PM Food Mart - Phillips 66, 2720 W. Kearney St., Springfield. Dec. 6 routine inspection – Result: active. One priority violation: One package of tornadoes was sitting on counter and forgotten and were 73 degrees F. These were promptly discarded at inspector's request. Four non-priority violations: Several bags of ice lacked name, address or phone number of where they were packaged; an open box of egg patties and a box of egg rolls sitting on walk-in freezer floor; inside of the ice machine was not clean and lid was open; no paper towels at back hand sink.

Arby's Roast Beef Restaurant, 735 S. Glenstone Ave., Springfield. Dec. 6 complaint – Result: active. One priority violation: Food employee working without being symptom-free for 24 hours after being excluded from work for vomiting. Corrected by employee being sent home and education given on exclusion and re-instatement requirements. No non-priority violations.

Beshaler Hot Chocolate, 1645 W. Republic St., Springfield. Dec. 5 routine inspection – Result: active. No violations observed at the time of inspection.

Burger King #28213, 425 N. West Bypass, Springfield. Dec. 1 routine inspection – Result: active. No priority violations. One non-priority violation: Floor under front self-service drink station was not clean.

Cowden School, 2927 S. Kimbrough Ave., Springfield. Dec. 5 routine inspection – Result: active. No violations observed at the time of inspection.

Domino's Pizza, 3308 W. Chestnut Expressway, Springfield. Dec. 6 routine inspection – Result: active. Discussed temperature requirement for hand sinks. No violations observed at the time of inspection.

El Paraiso Mexican Kitchen, 305 E. Chestnut St., Strafford. Dec. 6 routine inspection – Result: active. No violations observed at the time of inspection.

Greene Valley School, 1601 E. Pythian St., Springfield. Dec. 1 routine inspection – Result: active. No violations observed at the time of inspection.

Harter House, Deli/Meat, 421 E. Old Route 66, Strafford. Dec. 6 routine inspection – Result: active. No priority violations. One non-priority violation: Observed an unlidded employee beverage near a food prep area.

Hood's Restaurant, 1651 S. Highway K, Bois d'Arc. Dec. 2 routine inspection – Result: Permitted with reinspection. Two priority violations: observed baked potatoes held at temperatures below 135 degrees Fahrenheit, potatoes were discarded; foods held at temperatures above 41 degrees in upright fridge. One non-priority violation: Observed missing floor tiles in kitchen prep area.

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Kum & Go #497, 3049 E. U.S. Highway 60 East, Republic. Dec. 7 routine inspection – Result: active. Discussed hot water requirements at hand sinks. One priority violation: Observed improperly labeled spray bottle of sanitizer, which was corrected at time of inspection. No non-priority violations.

Lavish Grazing Holdings, LLC, 4268 S. Hillcrest Ave., Springfield. Dec. 2 routine inspection – Result: active. No violations observed at the time of inspection.

Love's Travel Stop Hardees, 400 N. State Highway 125, Strafford. Dec. 6 routine inspection – Result: active. No violations observed at the time of inspection.

Mexican Villa West, 1100 W. Sunshine St., Springfield. Dec. 6 complaint – Result: active. No violations observed at the time of inspection.

Panera Bread, 4100 S. Campbell Ave., Springfield. Dec. 8 routine inspection – Result: active. No violations observed at the time of inspection.

Panera Bread, 1570 E. Battlefield Road, Springfield. Dec. 6 routine inspection – Result: active. No violations observed at the time of inspection.

Panera Bread, 2641 E. Sunshine St., Springfield. Dec. 1 routine inspection – Result: active. No violations observed at the time of inspection.

PKD Venue & Cafe, 7330 W. Farm Road 170, Republic. Dec. 7 routine inspection – Result: active. Discussed proper storage of in-use coffee spoon, which must be kept in water 135 degrees or above, in a dry container or on a clean surface. No priority violations. One non-priority violation: Observed need for dispensers that provide individual disposable towels.

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Rapid Roberts #118, 5011 S. State Highway FF, Battlefield. Dec. 5 re-inspection – Result: active. Previous priority item corrected: Ice machine has been cleaned and flushed, hoses replaced. Core item corrected: Test strips and thermometer available for use. One priority violation: Observed there was not a hand sink in food preparation area. No non-priority violations.

Rice House Restaurant, 625 S. Kimbrough Ave., Springfield. Dec. 5 routine inspection – Result: active. No priority violations. Five non-priority violations: 1. Observed significant mold accumulation on back walls by walk-in cooler, and observed significant grease buildup under wok area. Clean mold accumulation and grease accumulation by Dec. 16. Compliance check will be conducted after this date to ensure cleaning has occurred. 2. Observed cardboard boxes of chicken and broccoli stored directly on floor of walk-in cooler. Move boxes to ensure they are at least 6 inches off the floor to prevent contamination. 3. Observed holes in floors and ceiling. Fill holes to prevent entry of pests. 4. Observed prepared rice and cream cheese mixture not labelled with date of preparation. Person in charge added date label to both items. Be sure items are labelled when they are prepared. 5. Observed walk-in cooler fans non-functional. Facility is using walk-in freezer fans to maintain temperature. Foods in walk-in cooler are 41 degrees or below with assistance of freezer fans. Walk-in cooler must be in good repair and proper adjustment. Fix walk-in cooler to be in good repair and maintain 41 degrees or below. Must have plans to fix, scheduled date to fix, or bids to fix to inspector by Dec. 31.

Rountree School, 1333 E. Grant St., Springfield. Dec. 7 routine inspection – Result: Permitted with reinspection. One priority violation: Observed milk cooler with build-up of ice inside top of cooler not keeping milk at or below 41 degrees (milk 43 degrees). Milk was to be moved to kitchen cooler until milk cooler can keep product below 41 degrees. No non-priority violations.

Starbucks Coffee Company #62589, 2817 N. Kansas Expressway, Springfield. Dec. 5 routine inspection – Result: active. There is a small drip from a connection of main water line near back door. No priority violations. One non-priority violations: Observed open container of clean utensils and equipment was being stored in front of the back hand sink and could be splashed into. Promptly moved at inspector's request.

Taco Bell, 2047 E. Independence St., Springfield. Dec. 1 routine inspection – Result: active. No violations observed at the time of inspection.

The Barnhouse Event Center - Kitchen, 5484 W. Sunshine St., Brookline. Dec. 6 routine inspection – Result: Permitted with reinspection. No priority violations. Four non-priority violations: 1. Observed grease build-up at grill, grease is dripping into pan on floor; build-p of grease on PVC pipes below 3-vat sink. Increase cleaning frequency to prevent build-up of grease. 2. Observed no paper towels at hand sink in kitchen or bar sink. Manager notified who was not on-site. Use clean towel once until paper towels arrive. Paper towels should be stocked before any food or drink preparation begins for the day. 3. Observed no soap at kitchen hand sink. An extra soap moved from bar to back sink. Soap should be at each hand sink. Corrected on-site. 4. Observed gap at bottom of back kitchen door and hole observed where the door knob fits. Doors need to be tight fitting with no daylight coming through where pests could enter the facility.

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Tropical Smoothie Cafe, 3811 S. Campbell Ave., Springfield. Dec. 7 routine inspection – Result: Permitted with reinspection. No priority violations. One non-priority violation: Observed double door reach-in cooler and prep cooler not maintaining temperature. Repair company has been out. Items on prep cooler on time control and no potentially hazardous foods are being stored in double reach-in cooler, therefore core violation only issued.

USA Investments MO214, 125 S. State Highway 125, Strafford. Dec. 6 routine inspection – Result: active. No violations observed at the time of inspection.

Walmart Neighborhood Market #3111 Retail/Bakery, 545 W. El Camino Alto Drive, Springfield. Dec. 7 routine inspection – Result: active. No violations observed at the time of inspection.

Wendy's #1061, 4939 W. Chestnut Expressway, Springfield. Dec. 7 routine inspection – Result: Permitted with reinspection. A reinspection will be made on or after Dec. 12 to check on prep refrigerator and back paper towel dispenser. One priority violation: Observed prep line running warm, with Asiago cheese, pepper jack cheese and Muenster cheese at 55 to 58 degrees, which were discarded. Five non-priority violations: Observed back paper towel dispenser would not dispense paper towels correctly; observed power soak tank has small leak and drips onto floor when full and running; observed staff unable to find quaternary ammonia test strips for checking sanitizing solution; observed the lower portion of soda dispenser near drive-up window and area around nozzles on self-service soda machines in dining room were not clean; observed several boxes of food items in walk-in refrigerator and freezer were sitting on the floor, and some were open.

Wendy's #27, 3334 E. Sunshine St., Springfield. Dec. 5 routine inspection – Result: Permitted with reinspection. Observed salad cabinet at 44 degrees. No priority violations. One non-priority violation: Observed salad cooler not holding temperature to required 41 degrees.

Willard High School Basketball Concession, 515 E. Jackson St., Willard. Dec. 5 routine inspection – Result: active. No priority violations. One non-priority violation: Observed plastic spoons being dispensed to the public by the mouth contact surfaces rather than handle. These were discarded and new spoons were positioned with the handles up.