Las Vegas, NV (KTNV) -- Dirty Dining is back in Chinatown once again. This time at a restaurant just one demerit shy of shutdown.It's only been open three months and was almost forced to close its doors.The name sounds like a massage parlor, but it's actually a restaurant. Hot Feel on Spring Mountain welcomes customers with the wiggly legs of a giant craw fish, and a 40-demerit "C" grade, which worries the owner."Yup, your reputation is definitely at stake if you have a C grade posted," Darcy Spears said, talking on the phone to the owner, who had a unique reason for not appearing on camera."Your lips are swollen like a sausage? Why? Stress?" asked Darcy. "Your lips are swollen like sausages because of stress from the health inspection."During that health inspection, an employee handled dirty dishes then prepared food and drinks with no hand washing.Food was being stored in a freezer that was unplugged. Prepared food on skewers was sitting directly on top of a cardboard box. They had raw chicken and raw beef thawing together in standing water.The owner said his employees weren't up to speed on health district regulations and the inspection was a wake-up call.Inspectors found frozen crab legs thawing at room temperature, uncovered food, a dirty ice machine and Diet Coke syrup that had expired back in April.Hand sinks were blocked and being used for storage. Dirty, greasy water was being used to wash dishes.There were children and other unauthorized people in the kitchen. Employee drinks and a baby bottle were on prep surfaces next to food.Hood filters were excessively dirty and greasy and so was the floor behind appliances.As for their "C" grade, someone had covered it up behind things on the bar. The owner said all will be well by the time they're re-inspected and he has this message: Customers' health is the most important thing and he'll make sure that stays safe.We have one imminent health hazard closure to talk about. The Smith's supermarket bakery on Rampart and Lake Mead was ordered to shut down because its only hand sink wasn't working.Another one nearby wasn't draining and was filled with murky, dirty water.The owner of Hot Feel said he's scheduled their re-inspection for Friday, June 20.The North Rampart Smith's said its bakery was reopened within hours, with fixed hand sinks and an "A" grade.
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Dirty Dining: Hot Feel in Chinatown
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Dirty Dining: King & I on Tropicana near Maryland
Las Vegas, NV (KTNV) -- This week's Dirty Dining takes us back to a place we've been before. The restaurant's new owners hadn't gotten rid of old problems.The King & I Thai restaurant on East Tropicana near Maryland Parkway is a Dirty Dining repeat offender.When inspectors came on June 10, co-owner Ontida Tanthmanatham said, "They brought the old report and said, 'How could you have the repeated stuff?' And what happened, that was a previous management. And this is no excuse that we still did something wrong."We first featured the King & I in February 2013. The owner at the time said they were just having a bad day.But you might say this one is worse. Back then, they didn't have roaches.At the June 10 inspection, the kitchen was harboring a whole cockroach family.The King & I was shut down with 50 demerits.Inspectors found dirty, greasy surfaces throughout the kitchen. The bottom of the reach-in doesn't look too good, but it's nothing compared to the floors underneath equipment."A lot of stuff was actually in an area that was difficult to see," Ontida said.The roaches could see it. She said inspectors told her that's what they were feeding on.There were also concerns that many food items, including milk, were at unsafe temperatures. Raw beef was thawing at room temp on top of a cardboard box full of raw eggs.Also, employees weren't properly washing their hands, despite a prominently posted SNHD flier.Their soup pot looked like it was decaying. They've since replaced it with a new one.They were re-selling crispy duck they'd bought from a Chinatown restaurant."There was something that was labeled shrimp when it was actually chicken," said Darcy Spears."That one, I have no comment on that. It just should not be that way," Ontida said.Ontida said management is as much to blame as employees."Think about it. If you have to come by it's actually very embarrassing, and at the same time I truly apologize for our customers, long-time customers, we doing our best and we going to continue to improve."There was no imminent health hazard at the King & I, but there were plenty across the valley.Mandalay Bay Beach's Moorea bar, Hot Dog on a Stick on West Warm Springs, the 7-11 deli on Fremont and 15th, Nanay Gloria's on Spring Mountain and the upstairs bar at Share nightclub on Wynn Road were all shut down for no hot water.Sammy's Food Service truck No. 5 was closed too, because it didn't have adequate refrigeration.The King & I reopened with a zero-demerit "A" grade.Most of the other spots reopened with "A" grades as well, except Share nightclub's upstairs bar and Sammy's food truck No. 5, which are both still closed.
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Dirty Dining: Happy's Pizza, Orchids Garden and more
Las Vegas, NV (KTNV) -- It's an unhappy day at a local pizzeria as they find themselves at the top of our Dirty Dining list.Happy's Pizza on West Flamingo says they're "delivering more than just great pizza." Right now, they're delivering 40 demerits and a C grade to their customers."One demerit shy of being shut down by the health district, so that can't make anybody around here too happy," Contact 13 Chief Investigator Darcy Spears pointed out to Damian Biondich, the morning manager at Happy's."We're fixing everything," Damian said. "I'm shocked we're on Dirty Dining or whatever it is."The health inspector found improper hand-washing, hamburgers, chicken and other meats in the temperature danger zone, dirty towels being used to clean up, and expired buttermilk.Employee drinks were everywhere they're not supposed to be.The person in charge on June 17 told inspectors the owner "does not like customers watching employees handle food." So they keep the make table tops open to block the view, according to the inspection."Oh, get out of town. It is on there. Yeah, I see it right there in bold," Biondich said when we showed him the inspection report.We also found the view blocked when we were there.Inspectors found uncovered food in the walk-in freezer and black mold on a soda fountain nozzle. Inspectors called excessive carbon build-up to the point that pizza trays were impossible to clean.The inspector notes that Happy's was shut down last December with 31 demerits and no hot water, so they have to attend a supervisory conference at the health district.It's hard to believe Orchids Garden got fewer demerits than Happy's Pizza. The front cook-line at the Chinese restaurant on West Sahara was shut down as an imminent health hazard with 36 demerits. Inspectors found a cockroach infestation and liquid waste backing up onto the kitchen floor.Speaking of cockroaches, El Buen Taco Truck No. 1 earned a "roach coach" title when inspectors shut it down. They found food held over from the previous day, no hot water, and a roach infestation to the point that they were crawling on the cutting board.The Plaza Hotel pool bar was shut down for having no running water.And Taqueria El Paisano on South Decatur was shut down for repeat major violations and failure to prevent recurring risk factors for food-borne illness.Happy's says they'll be reinspected on July 9. All the rest are back up to A grades.
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Dirty Dining: Nem Nuong Bistro
Las Vegas, NV (KTNV) -- Nem Nuong Bistro on Spring Mountain has only been open for five months.Jonh Dang is the person in charge. "When we open it, it's 40 people. Now we have only 20 people. I fired a lot of people. They're supposed to know what they doing. You know? I can't be here babysit them all day."Dang wasn't happy to see his restaurant shut down by the health district with 50 demerits, but he's taking it in stride."It is, what it is, you know? I mean, when the health come in, they shut you down, whatever, two days. You know, we're around but you can't say much anything, you know?"One of the biggest problems inspectors found was potentially hazardous foods including meat, noodles, rice and lettuce, in the temperature danger zone.He blames a learning curve, saying they recently relocated to Las Vegas."Because we from California, and when the health down in California totally different than the health up here," said John.Inspectors did note things other than temperature, like utensils and dishes that were dirty, but stored as clean.What about a food handler using bare hands on ready-to-eat fish cakes? Or going from handling dirty dishes to clean ones and from dirty dishes to food with no hand-washing?"There's certain things that sometime when it's busy, when it's lunch, you cannot follow exactly what the rule is."Other problems for Nem Nuong were foods improperly stored and raw beef defrosting next to dirty dishes. Food handlers used the same cloth towel for raw and cooked animal products.Open, raw chicken feet were stored in plastic grocery store bags, which isn't sanitary. Open food, including vegetables, were stored on floor.Jonh said they worked hard to fix it all, "We have A. We have A+ now."Well, there's no such thing as an A+, but they are back to a 6-demerit A.We've got two other closures to tell you about.Ichiza on Spring Mountain and Yama Japanese restaurant on East Flamingo were both shut down after failing re-inspections for repeat critical and major violations.Yama is back open with a zero-demerit A, and Ichiza reopened with a six-demerit A.
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Dirty Dining: Ocha Thai Cuisine and 7-11 Bar
Las Vegas, NV (KTNV) -- Health inspectors said the restaurant in this week's Dirty Dining needs a talking to. They're concerned their history of failing routine health inspections puts the public at risk.The Thai restaurant is a repeat offender. The good news? This time they don't have roaches. That's what shut them down the first time we were there. What's got health inspectors so worried now?They found enough problems to give a 37-demerit "C" grade to Ocha Cuisine on Las Vegas Boulevard near Charleston.Inspectors found employees touching ready-to-eat food with bare hands. There was also food stored on the floor, excessive sticky build-up on soda nozzles and raw meat thawing at room temperature with dirty dishes.When we paid them a visit, it was deja vu all over again. Manager Larry Xaypanya said much of the problem was due to broken equipment.The dish machine was red tagged because it wasn't sanitizing dishes. A refrigerator and the make table were also taken out of service."It seems like you guys had to throw away so much stuff, like lettuce and cabbage and sausage and fish cakes and beef and chicken," said Chief Investigative Reporter Darcy Spears."When things are broken, you know, that's when the food goes bad," Larry said.They did have to toss a ton of stuff because health inspectors found it at unsafe temperatures. They also found a condenser leaking onto food, grocery bags used to store food and mold in the ice machine, which was a problem there before."That was an ice machine that we bought. But you know, we cleared it up, cleaned it," Larry explained.Last year, the owner blamed their problems on cultural differences with the way things are done in their kitchen.Larry said that's still an issue, "We're family-owned and it's kinda hard to tell the family anything, because these ladies been cooking for like 30 years and it's a language barrier, you know? But now they understand."We've also got some closures to tell you about. 7-11 Bar on Arville and Sahara was shut down for repeat violations, including fruit flies in a whiskey bottle. There were also roaches and rodent feces. Apparently the rat traps weren't doing the trick. The last pest control receipt they could find to show inspectors was from December of 2011.Lastly, Kenya's Catering Truck No. 2 was shut down for two imminent health hazards: Lack of adequate refrigeration and no hot water. A fly on the cutting board didn't do them any favors either.As of July 16, Ocha Thai still has a C grade. Both 7-11 Bar and Kenya's Catering are back open with zero-demerit A grades.Click here for more restaurant inspections conducted by the SNHD
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Dirty Dining: Hunan Jiu Jia in Chinatown
Las Vegas, NV (KTNV) -- Another Chinatown restaurant is shut down in this week's Dirty Dining. Why? Two words: Cockroach infestation.Those two words plus 45 demerits got Hunan Jiu Jia on Schiff Drive in Chinatown shut down by the Southern Nevada Health District.There were so many roaches at the July 11 inspection that it was called an imminent health hazard creating gross, unsanitary conditions."They took pictures of cockroaches everywhere. In the kitchen, in the food, on the floor, on the walls," said Chief Investigator Darcy Spears."No. Nothing. Today I'm very clean. This A is gave to me. I'm open two days already. Everything is good," said the boss Lisa Shen.Hunan Jiu Jia does have its A back now. But it was shut down for a week after inspectors found multigenerational roaches in the food including ready-to-eat peanuts and bamboo.They were crawling on the food contact surfaces, even on knives and other utensils."We wanted to know how come so many roaches found their way into the kitchen?" asked Darcy."I don't know," Shen responded.Health inspectors said the place was attracting pests. Gaps near the main door provided a way in, cracks in the walls provided shelter and greasy floors provided food for the roaches.But roaches aren't all inspectors found. One employee was caught washing his hands over food that was being prepped.There was also meat at an unsafe temperature, unlabeled food, uncovered food and food stored on the floor. The microwave was dirty and cutting boards were deeply grooved and darkly stained.Shen shows us how things are different now, "Everything is new."Other imminent health hazard closures include Marie Callender's on East Sahara and McDonald's at Sahara and Arville. Both were caught operating with no hot water.Pachuca Hidalgo Catering was shut down for lack of adequate refrigeration.Lee's Buffet on East Flamingo may soon be out of business. Its health permit was suspended pending revocation.When inspectors arrived to verify a complaint, they found the previously revoked operators both there. According to the report, one tried to flee out the back door at the sight of health inspectors. The other was in the kitchen handling food.Hunan Jiu Jia has hired a food safety consultant and fired their pest control company. All the other restaurants except Lee's Buffet have reopened with A grades.
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Dirty Dining: Asian Buffet and RA Sushi
Las Vegas, NV (KTNV) -- From the Stateline to the Las Vegas Strip, Dirty Dining takes a tour of Las Vegas Boulevard.We'll start by heading south to Primm where anyone might stop for a bite on their way in or out of town, especially if you're bargain hunting.At the Fashion Outlets Mall, Asian Buffet was one demerit shy of shutdown with a 40-demerit "C" grade at their July 15 inspection.No one at the restaurant wanted to talk about what inspectors found such as fish, gyoza, chicken and spring rolls at unsafe temperatures.Food was stored uncovered on the floor and bulk bags sat wide open. The ice scoop was stored in a container with dried food debris and there was black mold in the ice machine.Open chicken and meat were being stored in a Pepsi cooler, and leafy greens were left in plastic grocery bags.Watermelon was sliced right through the label. Sauces and other foods had no labels or dates at all. A wall was dirty, a handsink clogged and there was no soap at the dish machine.Inspectors were also concerned about a four-year-old child in the food-handling area. They found a child's bedding as well as drawings on the walls.There's one imminent health hazard closure to tell you about. As you probably know, eating raw fish can be a gamble in an of itself. So it's no wonder health inspectors shut down RA Sushi at the Fashion Show mall for lack of adequate refrigeration.The restaurant also got 38 demerits.Inspectors said the only walk-in refrigerator containing all their potentially hazardous foods was too warm.The person in charge told inspectors it wasn't the first time that fridge had problems holding a safe temperature. Everything from squid, salmon and crab mix to beef, chicken and tofu had to be tossed in the trash.Inspectors also found expired ceviche salsa and cucumber kimchi, which were both at least a week old.There were fruit flies by the ice machine and pink and black mold inside it.RA Sushi was re-inspected and reopened the next day with an 8-demerit A grade. Asian Buffet is scheduled for re-inspection Thursday.
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Dirty Dining: Asian BBQ & Noodle
Las Vegas, NV (KTNV) -- Food being prepped on the ground in a back alley? Believe it. It's Wednesday.It's a picture you have to see to believe. Raw ducks and chickens on back alley asphalt. Along with noodles, a pot of some kind of liquid and a container of what look like innards.All that is a big part of why Asian BBQ & Noodle on Jones and Desert Inn was shut down with 41 demerits.The restaurant is now back open and packed with customers. Action News was shooed outside to talk about the back alley barbecue."That's not sanitary. Why would they do that?" asked Darcy Spears."They was trying to put it in the freezer. That's all," said Tony Lung."They were trying to put it in the freezer? So why did they take it outside?" asked Darcy."Well, because we have to transfer it to the freezer ourselves," said Lung.He said they were shipping food out because the restaurant had lost power in the kitchen and had no hot water."You know you're supposed to shut down because that's an imminent health hazard," Darcy said."We did shut down. We did refuse the customers coming in but there was one customer that take to-go only," Lung explained.That's not what the report says.Inspectors found the door open, the open sign flashing, and customers lined up by the cash register where an employee was putting BBQ pork on a cutting board.They also saw kitchen employees actively thawing duck and pork skin.Cooked noodles, sausage, pork, roast duck and sauce were all at unsafe temperatures. A handsink clearly wasn't being used for handwashing, and floors were puddled with water.Inspectors found a can opener and holder caked with old food debris, a rusted meat cleaver and dirty bulk containers, shelving and other equipment.Then there's the insect-covered fly paper rolls hanging in two separate areas over food and clean kitchenware, as well as live flies in the kitchen.Other closures include Sushi Mon Japanese restaurant on South Maryland Parkway, shut down for repeat critical and major violations including food at unsafe temperatures, dirty kitchenware and lots of flies.Quality Food Service is a Dirty Dining repeat offender. This time, their No. 5 truck was shut down for an imminent health hazard, lack of adequate refrigeration resulting in a lot of food in the temperature danger zone.South Philly Steaks and Fries on South Grand Central Parkway was shut down for operating without hot water.Asian BBQ & Noodle, Sushi Mon and South Philly Steaks and Fries all reopened the next day with A grades. Quality Food Service truck No. 5 is still closed.
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Dirty Dining: Yun Nan Garden, Ichiban and Church's Chicken
Las Vegas, NV (KTNV) -- Dirty Dining is back in Chinatown with another closure. This time, Contact 13 caught the restaurant red-handed as they defied health district orders.What we saw is a no-no. The health district's closure sign lying face down on a table where no one can see it.Contact 13 took a photo of that on Aug. 5, the day after Yun Nan Garden on Schiff Drive in Chinatown was shut down with 47 demerits.That's not how it looked on Aug. 4 when inspectors left, with the closure sign properly displayed in the front window.But later that same day, a neighbor took cell phone video and shared it with the health district and Contact 13. The video shows a table full of people eating dinner, hours after they were ordered to shut down. When they saw us taking pictures, they quickly put the sign back up.Health inspectors documented improper hand-washing. Various potentially hazardous foods were out of temperature in the kitchen, including cooked noodles, rice and raw eggs.Bowls were stacked directly on top of cut cabbage and bean sprouts without barriers. They were washing dishes next to thawing raw meat. Also, the meat slicer had dried food debris in crevices.The owner was unable to answer questions about their employee health policy, food safety or proper water temperature.When we arrived to talk about the health report, no one came to greet us. We stood waiting and saw the owner peek out at us from behind the kitchen curtain.After nearly 10 minutes, we decided to find out what's going on. An employee directed us to talk to the owner's friend, who went into the kitchen and returned five seconds later to say the owner is too busy."The person has no time to talk to me? Ok, can you ask if there's a better time for us to come back and do an interview with him?" Darcy Spears asked.He said to leave a business card and said the owner will call, but he never did.Moving on to some other closures: Church's Chicken at 4800 East Flamingo had three imminent health hazards, inadequate refrigeration, multiple roof leaks into food prep areas and pest infestation, both cockroaches and flies.Ichiban at the Fashion Show mall was also infested with multigenerational cockroaches. Inspectors found them throughout the facility, which was closed for repeat critical and major violations.El Pollo Mobile #2 was closed for lack of adequate refrigeration and failing to have a toilet facility available for food handlers.New Jumbo Buffet at 1617 South Decatur saw its main kitchen shut down for lack of adequate refrigeration.Yun Nan Garden faced no additional violations for failing to display the closure sign because health inspectors didn't see it with their own eyes. But they did talk about it in their supervisory conference. The health district also said the people eating in the restaurant after it was closed were family members, and the agency can't do anything about that. Yun Nan is back open with an A grade. So is El Pollo Mobile and Ichiban. Church's Chicken and New Jumbo Buffet's main kitchen are both still closed.
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Dirty Dining: Casa Mexico Restaurant
Las Vegas, NV (KTNV) -- A valley Mexican restaurant is at the center of this week's Dirty Dining report. It was shut down after health inspectors uncovered a number of violations, including a major health hazard.No hot water. That's what officials with the Southern Nevada Health District said was missing when they paid a visit to Casa Mexico on East Desert Inn and McLeod.The imminent health hazard means employees were unable to properly wash their hands at the restaurant. In all, Casa Mexico was forced to close its doors with 60 demerits. Anything more than 40 demerits is an automatic closure.According to the inspection report, cheese, tomatoes and cut cabbage were all found at the wrong temperature. A bag of raw meat was thawing at room temperature.There were also problems with some equipment. A refrigerator leak was dripping into some beans. The ice machine had what was described as "excessive mold-like growth." Dry food debris was found on the meat slicer and some utensils.The report also says the person-in-charge didn't know basic food safety rules.On the day Contact 13 paid a visit to Casa Mexico, the restaurant was still closed. We left multiple messages, asking for more information, but never heard back from anyone.Other closures include the Curbside Cafe and Quality Food Service Number 5 food trucks. Both were closed for inadequate refrigeration.Chapala's Mexican Restaurant on East Tropicana near Pecos was also closed due to a lack of adequate refrigeration.The Renaissance Hotel & Envy Bar was shut down for not having any hot water.Curbside Cafe, Chapala's Mexican Restaurant and the Envy Bar are all reopened with A grades.
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Dirty Dining: Tea Station, HK Star and many more
Las Vegas, NV (KTNV) -- Break out the pen and paper because you're going to want to take notes during this week's Dirty Dining.There are 10 restaurants this week, all shut down by the health district. The highest demerits, 58 of them, went to Tea Station on Spring Mountain.Inspectors shut it down after finding major problems with hand-washing, including an employee who handled raw meat and then cooked food.Someone also washed their hands in the prep sink over cooked food.How about some steak a la kitchen floor? A bucket of raw meat was stored on the ground. Chicken too, but at least that was covered.Clean wares were stored under dirty water pipes. Inspectors also found boxed mangoes stored on a dirty mop bucket. The ice machine had quite a build-up of green slime.Floors, walls, shelving, floor sinks and storage containers were excessively dirty."The health inspector come into here to check my restaurant. They find some problem," said Manager Ben Tang. He doesn't deny what inspectors wrote up. They found cockroaches, rusted faucets and blood leaking onto the bottom of the freezer."We change a lot," said Tang.He showed us around the kitchen where they patched up cracked floor tiles, replaced faucets and floor drains and caulked to keep cockroaches out."Some people say all the Spring Mountain Chinese restaurants all is dirty. No. All the restaurants want to keep clean. All the restaurants want to give the good food."Tea Station was back open the next day with an A grade.The long list of imminent health hazard closures begins with HK Star Cantonese Restaurant on South Jones.It was closed with 50 demerits after inspectors found an absolutely filthy kitchen and cockroaches in the food. The place was infested with multi-generational roaches which were breeding between tables pushed together. The health district usually only takes still pictures, but this place was so bad, inspectors took video of roaches running around the kitchen.Jasmine Express on Camino al Norte in North Las Vegas was shut down with 50 demerits for problems with their water, multiple foods at unsafe temperatures and cockroaches. Get this, the restaurant operator had to be taken away by ambulance after suffering a nervous breakdown during the inspection.Three food trucks were taken off the streets for lack of adequate refrigeration.Carefree Catering Truck #35, which was also caught re-using sausage, potatoes, bacon and pork that were held over from the previous day.El Buen Taco Truck #2 and Kenia's Catering Truck #2. Both businesses are Dirty Dining repeat offenders.China Star Super Buffet on West Charleston was shut down for repeat critical and major violations.Long John Silver's & A&W on East Lake Mead had to close after inspectors found multiple water leaks over food areas.Villa Pizza and Panda Express, both at the Meadows Mall, were shut down after health inspectors found them operating without electricity.All the restaurants are back open with A grades. HK Star failed its first re-inspection, but passed the second one and reopened with an A on Wednesday morning.
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Dirty Dining: Cafe Noodle & Chinese Barbecue
Las Vegas, NV (KTNV) -- You might think you're having Dirty Dining deja vu but read closely.Contact 13 returns to the same Chinatown strip mall as last week, but we visit a different restaurant the health district shut down not once, but twice.Pork intestines and pork balls. Those are just two things inspectors found in the temperature danger zone at Cafe Noodle & Chinese Barbecue on Spring Mountain."We cannot pass the inspection so it's shut two days," said owner Karen Choy.The first closure came after inspectors found potentially hazardous foods not properly cooled including duck, noodles and chicken.There was uncovered meat in the freezer, slime and stains in the ice machine and food stored on the floor.As for the eggs, tofu, chicken and other foods at unsafe temperatures, Choy said inspectors caught them during the lunch rush, "When they running you can't check every time, you know?"Inspectors also saw improper hand-washing including someone not washing hands after handling raw chicken."Yeah, we work on education them, you know, keep them to doing more often, you know, have to do it," Choy said with a laugh.The men's restroom was described as dirty and stinky. Freezer racks, kitchen wares and appliances were dirty."Some of those pictures of the floor, it looks like no one had cleaned in a really long time," said Darcy Spears."Actually, we cleaning the kitchen every night. We hired two people to clean after we close," said Choy.But three days after they first closed, Cafe Noodle failed re-inspection due to repeat critical and major violations.Cups, teapots, strainers and plates were all dirty, but stored as clean. The floors were still dirty. And inspectors found them preparing food while they were shut down."We had misunderstanding because we think we can open the next day," said Choy.There was also moldy zucchini and live insects of an unknown species. Choy said the pests probably came in with the food during delivery."We don't have problem for the pest control, for the pests," said Choy. "Since I use the Ecolab, we are fine. Before, we close because the cockroach. That's why I use a lot of money to take care of that."She promised they will do their best to stay clean and pest-free from now on.As for imminent health hazard closures: Sammy's Pastrami on South Decatur, Farmer Boys on North Lamb and McDonald's on South Eastern were all shut down for operating with no hot water.Cafe Noodle and all the other restaurants are back open with A grades.
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Dirty Dining: Gold Diggers, Tropicana Havana and Bahama Breeze
Laughlin, NV (KTNV) -- Dirty Dining goes bar hopping at three places that were closed by the Southern Nevada Health District.It probably goes without saying, nothing should be swimming in your drink. But that's what inspectors found at the sports bar at Gold Diggers inside the Golden Nugget in Laughlin.It was one of three bars shut down by the health district.Gold Diggers got the highest demerits with 36, which is typically not enough for closure, but bugs in the booze did the trick. Fruit flies inside in-use liquor bottles was a repeat critical violation at Gold Diggers.The household flying insect killer obviously wasn't doing the trick. But having that is a violation, too, because they're not allowed to use it. Bars and restaurants have to use professional pest control.Inspectors also found problems with handwashing and with the handsink.Multiple containers of milk were at unsafe temperatures and the fridge the milk was in got red-tagged. The ice scoop handle was touching drink ice. Gallon containers of chemicals weren't labeled.There was no sanitizer in sanitizer buckets. Soda hoses were dangling and subject to contamination.Inspectors were also concerned about holes in the walls, dirty walls and dirty baseboards.Contact 13 spoke to the hotel's food and beverage manager who said this isn't their proudest moment. He wouldn't go on camera or allow us inside.Our two imminent health hazard closures are also bars.The Tropicana Havana pool bar at the Tropicana hotel-casino on south Las Vegas Boulevard was shut down for actively serving food during an imminent health hazard. The bar had no hot water for handwashing.The Bahama Breeze outdoor bar at the restaurant in the Howard Hughes Center was shut down for the very same reason, actively operating without hot water.Gold Diggers and the Tropicana Havana pool bar are both back open with A grades. Bahama Breeze outdoor bar is still closed.
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Dirty Dining: Ichiza, Cafe Verdi West Pizzeria and more
Las Vegas, NV (KTNV) -- Chinatown is once again the site for Dirty Dining. But this time, it's a Japanese restaurant health inspectors shut down with 50 demerits.Ichiza, on the second floor of a Spring Mountain strip mall we've been to three times, is a Dirty Dining repeat offender. Ichiza was previously closed by the health district in late June.At its Sept. 2 inspection, there were lots of problems with hand-washing. Potentially hazardous foods including beef, eggs and cooked shrimp heads were at unsafe temperatures.When Contact 13 asked to speak to whoever was in charge, they asked us to wait for the manager, who agreed to talk as long as we didn't show his face.In the health report, inspectors wrote up an employee for handling kitchen wares with an open wound that was not sufficiently wrapped, with blood seeping through the bandage under his glove."Yeah but he's not, he's actually not, he's not actually not working," the manager explained.They had beef stew, tomato sauce, marinated fish and a dish containing raw potato that were at least a week old. The manager said because they're so busy, things might get pushed to the back of the fridge where employees can't see them."So it gets busy and they don't always throw everything away as quickly as they should?" asked Darcy Spears."Yeah, because we have 300 items," the manager said.Inspectors also found uncovered food in the freezer and dry storage. A scoop handle was completely submerged in ready-to-eat tartar sauce."What about the ice machine? They found slime and black mold in the ice machine," Darcy said."Yeah, we try to every week to clean up but one of the co-worker forget one week," he said.The manager has a message for their customers, "I'm very sorry to regular customer. Please hope come back again, you know, so keep coming, please."We begin our list of imminent health hazard closures with Cafe Verdi West on South Valley View. The pizzeria was infested with multi-generational roaches throughout the kitchen, dining area and restroom. They'd even gotten inside the dough cooler.Also, several really dirty pizza pans were stored as clean in a soiled cardboard box next to what looked like a glob of raw meat.The Golden Nugget Laughlin was in last week's Dirty Dining.Now, it's Las Vegas' turn. The Vegas hotel battled a cockroach infestation in late 2012, and it appears the bugs are back. This time, the Remote Pump Room which stores food and soda for several of their restaurants was shut down for a multi-generational roach infestation.Tacos El Burrito Loco on South Valley View was shut down for repeat critical and major violations.There were flying insects inside a container of chilies, and multi-generational cockroaches in utensil drawers and elsewhere.All the facilities are back open with A grades except Cafe Verdi West. It is still closed.
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Dirty Dining: Kaizen Fusion Roll & Sushi
Henderson, NV (KTNV) -- Roach-infested pasta, moldy food and repeat violations. All that means just one thing. It's time for Dirty Dining.Kaizen Fusion Roll & Sushi restaurant on South Eastern in Henderson was first on Dirty Dining in March with a 33-demerit C grade. This time, the restaurant was shut down with 55 demerits."It is not what we're proud of but we are working to fix it," said Min Yoon.Min Yoon was brought in to fix everything at Kaizen after inspectors wrote them up for "continued downgrades during routine inspections and lack of active managerial control of risk factors involved in food-borne illness.""It's incompetence. I understand that. And we should be doing a lot better and we are doing a lot better," said Min Yoon.Kaizen wasn't following basic sanitation procedures with hand-washing, food temperatures or food storage. Raw bacon was stored over ready-to-eat fish for sushi and a box of chicken was stored on the floor. Fried tofu skin on a paper towel was wet and moldy, a repeat violation.Yoon said inspectors came on a very busy day and admits things got overlooked. Food was left uncovered, utensils were in standing, cloudy water. Some prepared food had no date labels. One container had a date that was nearly three weeks old."The improper labeling, it's because people have gotten lazy and I'm making sure that never happens ever again," said Yoon.Hair gel, liquid bandage and markers were stored in a container with clean kitchen utensils.The scoop and container for bulk foods was dirty. And kitchenware and utensils with old, dried food debris were stored as clean."The dish-wash staff would clean it half-heartedly and put them where people have to serve and the servers would always have to wash them again," said Yoon. "So now we've gotten really trained dishwashers and the kitchen staff so we make sure that never happens again."Kaizen's sushi bar was also shut down as an imminent health hazard for lack of adequate refrigeration.When Darcy Spears asked Yoon if we'd see him, he replied, "You will not. This will be the last time you guys are gonna see me on TV. I'm sure of that."Other imminent health hazard closures include Taj Palace on South Eastern for lack of adequate refrigeration. Inspectors also found expired food. The health district required Taj Palace to contract with a food safety consultant.N.Y. Pizza, Ribs and Wings on South Torrey Pines was shut down following a customer complaint.The place already had a C grade when the complaint came in about a cockroach infestation, no trash service and a hidden grade card.Inspectors did find piled up trash and roaches everywhere, including on uncooked pasta noodles and in boxes of sugar packets.Despite all those problems, all three restaurants rebounded and are back open with A grades.
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Dirty Dining: Hong Kong Garden Seafood & BBQ Cafe
Las Vegas, NV (KTNV) -- Seven is not a lucky number for diners this week. That's how many restaurants the Southern Nevada Health District shut down for posing threats to public health.Topping our Dirty Dining list: Hong Kong Garden Seafood & BBQ Cafe on Jones near Desert Inn was shut down with 58 demerits.For starters, there was a multi-generational cockroach infestation throughout the facility. There were also lots of flies, and it didn't take us long to spot one crawling around.When Contact 13 arrived, we were told nobody in charge was at the restaurant, which is a violation in itself. We reminded them of that, and they quickly called in owner Ruili Wang.When we asked him about the bugs, he said, "We have company to clean twice a month but still have some because they have lot of restaurants together."Inspectors also found water overflowing from a sink where raw pork and raw duck were thawing together. A bag of onions was stored on the floor. Newspaper was used to cover clams, and there was beef blood on the butter."I just want to talk to my customer," Wang said. "Sorry. OK? I be will do good job. Take care of clean health, and take care of my service and the food fresh."Inspectors couldn't tell if all of the food was fresh because several items weren't dated or labeled.Food including chicken, shrimp, raw fish and raw beef were all at unsafe temperatures. Cooked duck and pork hanging in the walk-in were touching racks and unwashed produce. There was an excessive amount of food debris throughout the facility."I take care of the clean, but maybe not very good, you know? So I'm so sorry. Right now I learn a lot. I talk to my employee. I care of them in the learning, how do you say English, health risk?"The health risk is gone, for now, as Hong Kong Garden is back to an "A" grade.Shaanxi Gourmet, right across the street from Hong Kong Garden, was shut down for a multi-generational cockroach infestation.Inspectors found a whole bunch of the bugs in a box of onions and more throughout the kitchen, even inside the dish machine.We've all heard Kermit the frog say, "It's not easy being green." And we've got a picture of a bunch of little guys who can attest to that. Inspectors photographed a sink full of live frogs at Hunan Jiu Jia on Schiff Drive in Chinatown.The Dirty Dining repeat offender was shut down for lack of adequate refrigeration and lack of "any managerial control." Inspectors call the person in charge "hostile," saying she knew there were problems but did nothing about them.The repeat offender list continues with Los Amigos. Their food truck number two was on Rock Quarry Way in North Las Vegas when inspectors shut it down for repeat critical and major violations including lack of refrigeration.Inspectors also found an employee's half-eaten banana on top of salsa for customers and food at unsafe temperatures.Pachuca Hidalgo catering is our third repeat offender. Their truck number two was taken off the road for lack of adequate refrigeration.Repeat offender Pho Little Saigon on Spring Mountain and Valley View was shut down with 53 demerits for things like improper hand-washing, moldy food and excessive flies.At number seven on our list, SmokeIt BBQ. It was at Farmers Market at Bruce Trent Park on Rampart and Vegas Drive when inspectors shut it down as an imminent health hazard.They found lack of hot water and improper reheating of food prepared the night before.SmokeIt BBQ has not been re-inspected yet. All the other restaurants and food trucks are reopen with "A" grades.
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Dirty Dining: Kahunaville at Treasure Island
Las Vegas, NV (KTNV) -- Dirty Dining hits the Las Vegas Strip as a Treasure Island restaurant tops the demerit list.Plus, this week's report has a theme: "Things that don't belong in a restaurant kitchen.""I'm dejected, obviously," said Kahunaville Owner Mark Green of his restaurant's "C" grade. "It was a wake-up call, especially for the employees."After 15 years at TI, Green is more embarrassed than anything about his restaurant's Sept. 26 inspection, "We invite people into our kitchen all the time. We're proud of our kitchen. So when something like this happens, yeah, it's disheartening."He said things got sloppy because it was a busy Friday night when inspectors dropped in."It was uncharacteristic of our staff. 27 demerits out of the 37 demerits were just mental lapses."Those "mental lapses" included tongs and knives a chef stored in a bucket full of chemical sanitizer."He was busy on Friday and instead of putting his utensils in the ice bath which is on top of the counter, he just put in right in the sanitary bucket. He was disciplined and I don't think he'll ever do that again."Corn salsa, butter, cooked vegetables, cut tomatoes and aioli had to be thrown out because all were at unsafe temperatures.A bag of soy beans was stored on open lemon slices. Ice cream with no lid was covered in frost. "No excuse for that," Green said.And there was brown slime in the side station, "They said that the brown slime was in the speed rack here and that's when soda drips down into here and it should be cleaned right away."Inspectors found straws stored under a soap dispenser, and unused employee paper towels soiled with brown stains."Something spilled into it. We don't use those towels. It's there. But nobody checked it."They also got dinged because of a silverware roller who health inspectors caught eating in the kitchen."She was finishing her shift and as she walked by, she grabbed a nacho chip and the chef said, "What are you doing?" And she left and then she grabbed a french fry. I mean, needless to say, she's not here, but it was a subcontractor. It wasn't even one of our employees."Green said they lost business operating under a "C" grade, which they had to keep for a few days because inspectors don't work weekends. They're now back to an "A."Our theme of "things that don't belong in a restaurant kitchen" begins with Domino's Pizza on East Lake Mead in North Las Vegas, where inspectors found a car tire next to pizza boxes.Domino's was shut down for an imminent health hazard because of a sewage back up. And, there were live roaches in the kitchen.The sushi set-up at Albertsons on South Stephanie in Henderson was shut down for lack of adequate refrigeration. And continuing with "things that don't belong in a restaurant kitchen," rubbing alcohol stored on a cart with sauces.Construction dust also doesn't belong in a restaurant kitchen.If your drink tasted like drywall at the Quad Lounge Bar on the Strip, that's because inspectors found unprotected ice and garnishes. Counters and glasses were also covered with dust.The bar was shut down for "conditions that may endanger public health."All the establishments are back to A grades except the Albertsons sushi area. It has not been re-inspected.
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Dirty Dining: Tokyoto Sushi in Boca Park
Las Vegas, NV (KTNV) -- A toxic pizza parlor and risky raw fish. That can mean only one thing: It's time for Dirty Dining.Dirty Dining starts this week's excursion with some sushi, Tokyoto Sushi in Boca Park on Rampart and Charleston. The restaurant was shut down with 45 demerits.Even if they didn't have that many, they still would have been closed for the imminent health hazard of no hot water.Inspectors found problems with handwashing. Shrimp tempura, rice and lettuce were at unsafe temperatures.The slicer was dirty with dried food and there was pink slime in the ice machine. Inspectors also found potentially hazardous foods were not dated.Food and utensils were stored on the floor. Containers and shelves were dirty. Walls and ceilings were greasy, and floors under equipment were blackened with grease and dirt.A can of household Raid, which is a no-no in restaurant kitchens, was also found.The one other imminent health hazard closure was Domino's Pizza on North Jones near Lake Mead. It was shut down for "misuse of poisonous and toxic materials."The red sauce on your pizza may have been more than sauce. When the inspector arrived to do a routine inspection at Domino's, he was overwhelmed by a strong smell of paint, and found the restaurant painting and remodeling while making and serving food.Red paint was splattered on the prep table, on food prep equipment and on containers of pizza dough.Shoe prints were found on the prep table too.The painters were washing their brushes and rollers in the kitchen sink with food equipment. There was even paint on the pans in the sink.Tokyoto Sushi got their "A" grade back by the skin of their teeth. They reopened with 9-demerits. More than 10 and they would have failed re-inspection. Domino's Pizza re-opened with a zero-demerit "A."
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Dirty Dining: Pho Bosa, Lowry's Catering and Wings
Las Vegas, NV (KTNV) -- Before you have your next party catered. Before you fill that craving for wings. Before you sip that noodle soup. You'll want to check out this week's Dirty Dining report.It's a tie for the dirtiest dining as two restaurants hit the top spot with 38 demerit C grades.At Pho Bosa on Spring Mountain and Polaris, inspectors found food improperly cooled, tofu, meat and greens in the temperature danger zone and utensils stored in tepid, greasy water.Vanessa Nguyen said the inspector came at a busy time and caught a new employee off guard."He was hired very new and so when you see other than your manager in here, he didn't know, kinda frazzled kinda thing."The inspector watched a food handler take something off the floor and put it onto the prep table. They were written up for improper handwashing, storing dough in plastic grocery bags and leaving potentially hazardous foods unlabeled.There was also a box of meat on the floor."Yeah, I think that, in the midst of everything it was placed there and it was supposed to be in the fridge right there and it just got placed on there and it's not something that they do."Spatulas were jagged and stained. The fridge floor was dirty, and an employee told the inspector they only wash their iced tea dispenser once a week."Things got overlooked a little bit. Of course those things are looked at now."The next 38-demerit C grade was Lowry's Catering, a company that rents kitchen space at a restaurant on West Sahara.Inspectors said the chef wasn't washing hands properly after handling a cell phone and raw meat. Ricotta cheese had been expired for nine days and was growing mold. Tortellini was cooling uncovered on the sink next to dirty dishes. The fryer area was dirty with accumulated grease."Lowry's Catering are some of the cleanest, most organized people in the food business I've ever seen," said the woman in charge at the restaurant where Lowry's rents space."They don't deserve this," she added.She showed us the catering company's new A grade card in the restaurant kitchen. We tried to reach them by phone and left a message, but they didn't return the call.We have two imminent health hazard closures, starting with the Lobsta Trap food truck. It was shut down for repeat violations and lack of adequate refrigeration. There were also flies landing on the cutting board and they didn't have their C grade posted for the public to see.If you've ever wondered what multi-generational cockroaches look like, Wings paints a perfect picture. The restaurant on West Lake Mead in North Las Vegas was shut down for a cockroach infestation.They even kept roach traps on the prep table. Inspectors found bugs everywhere. There were more than 50 caught on one roach board alone.Also, the stove and cooking equipment, down to the wheels, were excessively greasy.Instead of cleaning up, the owner told inspectors she plans to close for good, claiming she can't afford to pay the $716 complaint and closure fees.Pho Bosa still has a C grade. Lobsta Trap and Lowry's are back to zero-demerit As.
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Dirty Dining: Jinya Ramen Bar near Flamingo and Decatur
Las Vegas, NV (KTNV) -- A restaurant only open for a few months learns the devil is in the details on this week's Dirty Dining.Topping our Dirty Dining list just two demerits shy of shutdown is Jinya Ramen Bar on Flamingo and Decatur with a 39-demerit "C" grade.According to their website, they've only been open three months. But health inspectors found lots of problems with hand-washing, food improperly cooled and potentially hazardous foods in the temperature danger zone, including sushi rice, bean sprouts and chicken.Utensil handles were dirty. Sauces were unlabeled. Food was stored improperly, including raw fish over tofu, and raw scallops over strawberries.Food was also double-stacked without barriers, leaving it open to cross-contamination. There was pink mold in the ice machine. The dishwasher was red-tagged because it wasn't dispensing any sanitizer.Inspectors noted the staff was using fishing line for eggs. It's not quite clear how. But the health report says employees were reusing the fishing line and saving it for future food contact use.When we stopped by to talk about their violations, a woman identified herself as a manager, but said she wasn't working. She walked away in the middle of our conversation, then someone else came out to tell us the chef was the person-in-charge."He's Japanese. But he doesn't speak much English. Can we schedule this another time?"We left our contact information and they promised to call us back, but no one did.We have two imminent health hazard closures this week, starting with the snack bar at Gilcrease Orchard on North Tenaya. It was shut down for no hot water. In fact, when inspectors arrived, the hand-washing sink was being used to store dirty pots.Also, Cafe de Cebu on Flamingo near Rainbow was shut down for lack of adequate refrigeration. As a result, just about everything was at an unsafe temperature.Jinya Ramen Bar still has a "C" grade, but the health district says a re-inspection has been scheduled.All the rest are back open with A grades.
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