Updated Downtown Santa Ana restaurant health and sanitation violations

Orange County Supervisor Todd Spitzer has requested that the Health Care Agency update the issue of the public’s right to know about restaurant health and sanitation issues, which the Board of Supervisors last dealt with in 2008.  That was the year the Orange County Grand Jury recommended letter grade health ratings for restaurants.

The 2007-2008 Orange County Grand Jury concluded that the procedure for notifying the public in Orange County about the cleanliness and safety of neighborhood restaurants is almost non-existent.  They were right.  It still is.  Oh you can ask a restaurant for their inspection reports, but who does that?

So can you trust our restaurants?  Not the ones in Downtown Santa Ana!  Here are their latest health inspection reports – and major and minor health violations:

• 828 Pho – Oh my.  They were inspected on January 7, 2013, and received THREE major health violations, including “Improper Warewashing/Inoperable Dishmachine.” They also received 12 minor health violations.  They received three more minor health violations on January 17.
• Bistro 400 – They received one major health violation after an inspection on November 6, 2012, for “Improper Food Storage,” seven minor health violations.  They then received four more minor health violations after another inspection on November 13, 2012.
• Chapter One: The Modern Local – Their last inspection was on October 26, 2012.  They had one major violation, “Improper Holding Temp of PHF (60F-120F), (50F-59F),” and five minor violations, including “Lack of Food Protection Manager Certificate” and “Inadequate Hygiene (Hair/Clothing/Eating/Drinking)”
• The Crosby – Their last inspection was on October 30, 2012.   They had one major violation, “Improper Sanitizer Concentration/Method,” and six minor violations, including “Evidence of Vermin Activity/Presence of Animals/Insects.”
• Festival Hall – They rang up three minor health violations after an inspection on February 14, 2013, including “Restroom in Disrepair/Unclean/Improp. Use/Supplies.”
• The Grilled Cheese Spot – They were inspected on December 18, 2012.  They received five minor health violations, including “Signs/Labels/Menu Board/Trans Fat-Missing/Incorrect/Lack of Food Handler Card.”  And you simply must read their Yelp reviews.  Awful!
• The Gypsy Den – They received a major health violation on August 6, 2012, for “Improper Holding Temp of PHF (60F-120F), (50F-59F).”  They were inspected again on December 20, and received eight minor health violations, including “Inadequate Hygiene (Hair/Clothing/Eating/Drinking).”  They were finally cleared after another inspection on Dec. 21.
• Izalco – I must say this one disappointed me. They were inspected on January 3, 2013, and received one major health violation and eleven minor health violations.  They received a major health violation on August 7, 2012 too.
• Lola Gaspar – They received two major health violations and eight minor violations after being inspected on July 2, 2012, including “Improper Sanitizer Concentration/Method.” They received one more major health violation, “Improper Cooling Practices,”  and nine more minor health violations after another inspection on November 15, 2012.  They were handed four more minor health violations after another inspection on November 29, 2012, including “Lack of Food Protection Manager Certificate.”
• Memphis at the Santora – They were inspected on October 9, 2012, and received eight minor health violations, including “Evidence of Vermin Activity/Presence of Animals/Insects” and “Uncleanliness of Premises/Trash Storage.”  They were inspected again on October 16, 2012, and received three more minor health violations, including “Unsanitary Equipment/Utensil/Linen/Plumbing.”
• Original Mike’s – They received a major health violation, “Improper Holding Temp of PHF (60F-120F), (50F-59F),” after being inspected on October 10, 2012, as well as eight minor health violations.
• The Playground – Their last inspection was on November 8, 2012.  They had eight minor health violations including “Restroom in Disrepair/Unclean/Improp. Use/Supplies.”
• Proof Bar – They just celebrated their 7th Anniversary, but they were inspected on January 9, of this year, resulting in four minor health violations, including “Lack of/Improper Handwashing/Handwashing Sup.”  They were inspected again on January 17, resulting in three more minor health violations.  They were finally cleared on January 24.
• The Yost Theatre – They had a follow-up inspection on November 28, 2012.  They had ten minor health violations including “Evidence of Vermin Activity/Presence of Animals/Insects.”  They have since been busted for selling food outside their establishment.  And they got another minor violation, for “Unsanitary Equipment/Utensil/Linen/Plumbing,” on January 3, of this year.

We can’t have letter grade health ratings soon enough!

Art Pedroza Editor

Our Editor, Art Pedroza, worked at the O.C. Register and the OC Weekly and studied journalism at CSUF and UCI. He has lived in Santa Ana for over 30 years and has served on several city and county commissions. When he is not writing or editing Pedroza specializes in risk control and occupational safety. He also teaches part time at Cerritos College and CSUF. Pedroza has an MBA from Keller University.

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