Nine restaurants and eateries have failed health inspections since November, including five that were temporarily shut down.
At some of the restaurants public health inspectors found dozens of critical violations that included raw sewage on the floor, potentially hazardous food production and dishwasher malfunctions.
The Champaign-Urbana Public Health District officials inspected nearly 140 food establishments between Nov. 1, 2014 and Jan. 16, 2015. Restaurants can score as low as 36 out of 100 points and still pass their inspections.
During that time, inspectors shut down Chopstix at 202 E. Green St. #1 in Champaign Dec. 3, after it failed twice.
Chopstix failed its first health inspection on Nov. 17 with an adjusted score of 16 out of 100.
The restaurant failed its reinspection on Dec. 3 with an adjusted score of four and six critical violations. One was issued after an employee was observed eating in the kitchen, while another was issued for bags of chicken and containers of noodles being stored without a date stamp for when it was prepared.
Restaurants, food markets and other businesses are scored on a 100-point scale and fail with any adjusted score below 36. An adjusted score is calculated by inspectors deducting points for critical and non-critical violations, and then deducting additional points based on the number of repeat violations and the number of critical violations.
Restaurants whose scores fall below zero or have critical violations that pose threat to consumers are immediately shut down. Health officials automatically shut down restaurants if they fail a reinspection
If restaurants are in Champaign or Urbana, they are required to post a red placard in a prominent place. If they fail, but are not shut down, then they are supposed to post a yellow placard. If they pass, they post a green placard. County officials do not require establishments outside the two cities to post placards because they say it will hurt the establishments economically.
Chopstix received a “red” closure placard and was allowed to reopen on Dec. 8, when it received an adjusted score of 90 on its second reinspection.
Closure notices are not available on the Champaign-Urbana Public Health District’s new online food inspection database, so CU-CitizenAccess.org requests monthly closure notices from the district.
Other closures include:
American Legion Post No. 1015, 412 E. Main St., Mahomet
The health district shut down the American Legion Post No. 1015 on Dec. 15 after the owner did not pay the 2015 permit fee.
An American Legion representative paid the fees and its permit was reinstated on Jan. 14, according to Jim Roberts, environmental public health director for the Champaign-Urbana Public Health District.
Casey’s General Store, 502 W. Main St, Sidney
Casey’s General Store at 502 W. Main St. in Sidney was shut down on Nov. 5 when inspectors discovered the wastewater treatment system in the facility failed and there was raw sewage discharge on the ground in the back of the store.
Inspectors posted a red “closure” notice in the food service portions of the store. As of January 14, the permit was not reinstated.
Fazoli’s #1581 2029 N. Prospect, Champaign
A new worktable installed at the restaurant blocked some employees’ access to the kitchen hand sink. The health district shut down the restaurant on Nov. 26. On Nov. 28, the restaurant got its permit reinstated when it installed a temporary hand wash station.
Last Call for Alcohol, 105 N. Main St., Penfield
Inspected on Dec. 3 with an adjusted score of 10 and nine critical violations including approximately 20 closed to-go containers with food measured at unsafe temperatures.
Upon the bar and grill’s reinspection on Jan. 8, it received an adjusted score of 28 with three critical violations and was shut down for repeat violations including food stored at hazardous temperatures.
The bar and grill was reopened on Jan. 9 when it received an adjusted score of 78 on its second reinspection.
Noted below are the score and number of critical violations of the restaurants and food establishments that failed health inspections between November 1 — Jan. 19.
Chinatown Buffet, 713 Marketview Drive, Champaign
Inspected on Dec. 3 with an adjusted score of 32 and five critical violations including cooked meat sitting out until it reached unsafe temperatures. The dish machine did not dispense sanitizer at the start of the inspection.
The restaurant received an adjusted score of 88 on its Dec. 8 reinspection.
Masijta Grill, 202 N. Race St., Urbana
Inspected on Nov. 21 with an adjusted score of 26 and five critical violations including mayonnaise stored at room temperature and a plate of pulled pork the cook said was left over from the day before held at an unsafe temperature.
The restaurant received an adjusted score of 96 on its Dec. 4 reinspection.
Star Karaoke, 1503 Lyndhurst Alley, Savoy
Inspected on Nov. 13 with an adjusted score of 20 and four critical violations including five 5-gallon buckets of kimchi held at room temperature.
Kimchi is a traditional Korean dish made from fermented cabbage, cucumber, radish or scallion.
The owner threw out the kimchi because the health department had not tested the kimchi production process.
The restaurant received an adjusted score of 38 on its Dec. 9 reinspection.
Wedge Tequila Bar & Grill, 415 N. Neil St., Champaign
Inspected on Nov. 24 with an adjusted score of 28 and five critical violations including the dish machine temperature falling below the device’s heat standard and food such as coleslaw, rice, avocado and tomatoes held at improper temperatures.
The restaurant received an adjusted score of 91 on its Dec. 4 reinspection.