LAS VEGAS (KTNV) — The oldest existing restaurant in the valley offers a nod to the wild, wild West, and a reminder that when it comes to restaurants and roaches, this town ain't big enough for the both of 'em.
Once in the middle of nowhere, Bob Taylor's Original Ranch House is now surrounded by subdivision sprawl as Las Vegas has grown up around the restaurant that opened in 1955.
This vintage Las Vegas throwback has been serving up steaks and wild West atmosphere for 64 years.
There's cowboy memorabilia and John Wayne himself looking on from almost every wall.
But there's one villain even "The Duke" can't always halt.
The Ranch House near Tenaya Way and the 215 beltway was shut down Aug. 28 for a multi-generational cockroach infestation.
"So how did they get in and why do you guys think it was something that the Health District discovered before you discovered it?" Darcy Spears asked Ranch House Manager April Victor.
"Well, we're very diligent about our pest control and we gave them all the records," Victor responded. "They just saw a couple of them and... I wasn't here that day but this is what I understand."
Inspectors saw roaches on the cook line and prep areas.
They also found dirty, greasy walls, floor drains, floor mats and equipment.
All of those conditions attract bugs.
"They did find some and it's all been taken care of," Victor explained.
"How do you talk with the staff after something like this happens?" Spears asked.
"Oh!" Victor said with a laugh, "We talk a lot! Every day, all day it's clean, clean, clean."
Inspectors saw clean dishes and pans on dirty shelves, clean utensils stored in dirty drawers and the ice scoop on a dirty rack.
There was an expired carton of heavy cream, some of the red meat was turning brown and a dirty plate sat in the microwave.
"A lot of that stuff, you know, the devil is in the details when it comes to demerits," Spears pointed out.
"Correct," Victor responded. "And it's just teaching our staff again, going over everything, which we did."
Pasta, cut tomato and cooked onions had to be thrown out due to unsafe temperatures.
So did pans of cheese bread that were subject to cross contamination.
A scoop handle was contaminating croutons for salad and inspectors also found flies in the restaurant.
"We are back open, we have an A, we're very clean, we have great food," Victor said.
The Ranch House was back to a zero-demerit A grade on Aug. 30.
As for that imminent health hazard closure, April Victor said, "This is our first and it will be our last."
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The highest demerits went to Sammy's L.A. Pastrami -- also known as Sammy's Doghouse -- on Tropicana near Eastern Avenue. It got a 31-demerit C grade on Aug. 28.
There were live roaches under the freezer, dead roaches under the hot line grill and soda dispenser and roach droppings throughout.
Inspectors found garlic puree that had expired in March and blueberries dating back to July 1.
Other violations included improper handwashing after touching raw bacon and raw beef patties, uncovered raw gyro meat touching dirty shelves in the cooler, flies in the prep and service areas and excessive grease and dirt on walls and floors.
The inspection report says Sammy's needs a deep cleaning and that the one employee on staff "is insufficient to properly maintain and operate the facility."
We called Sammy's twice but have not heard back.
The Health District says Sammy's has not been re-inspected and hasn't scheduled anything.
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Other imminent health hazard closures include Kung Fu Tea at Fashion Show Mall which was shut down Aug. 29 for no hot water.
It was re-inspected on Aug. 30 and received a zero-demerit A grade.
The owner said they worked quickly to make the needed fix.
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AM/PM mini-mart's snack bar on Lamb Boulevard and Bonanza was shut down Aug. 29 for two imminent health hazards: no hot water and pest infestation.
No hot water is a repeat violation.
There were multi-generational roaches under the sink and in the mop area.
And the person in charge was not knowledgeable about food safety.
AM/PM was re-inspected on Sept. 3 and received a zero-demerit A grade.
The owner said his pest control company let him down so he fired them and hired a new one, adding that all issues were quickly resolved.
Click here to see report for Bob Taylor's Original Ranch House.
Click here to see the report for Sammy's L.A. Pastrami.
Click here to see the report for Kung Fu Tea.
Click here too see report for AM/PM.
