LAS VEGAS (KTNV) — Yummy Box Café on Spring Mountain Road and Arville Street got a 36-demerit C grade on its Aug. 25 inspection.
A food handler was cited for improper handwashing after breading raw meat. When prompted to wash by the inspector, he only did so for 7-10 seconds. Yummy Box Owner Jessica Chen said her employee got nervous because the inspector was watching over him.
Malfunctioning refrigeration equipment led to multiple foods sitting in the temperature danger zone. It all had to be thrown out including soy milk, pans of cooked rice, raw meats, kimchi, soup, tofu, cut cabbage, cut tomatoes, cut bok choy and cooked noodles.
Chen says it was “bad luck” that their refrigeration equipment failed the day the inspector was there.
A pan of raw meat was stored over an uncovered container of diced onions and another was over a container of cooked rice.
There was slime in the ice machine.
Sauce squeeze bottles were excessively dirty with dried food and the person in charge didn’t know when they were last washed. Chen says they use a special kind of soy sauce which is sticky so it’s easy for the bottles to get dirty after only one or two uses. She says the inspector doesn’t cook Chinese food so doesn’t understand their methods and products.
Chen said she does not agree with all the violations.
The meat slicer and the pan used to store dry flour for dredging meats were both heavily dirty with old food.
Grocery store plastic bags were being used to store pre-portioned foods.
Door handles and shelves in the refrigerator and food storage bins were all dirty and there were heavy grease and food build-up on the floor under the cook line.
Chen says everything has been cleaned, noting that other restaurants are dirtier. She explained that Yummy Box has reduced staff due to fewer customers so it’s harder to keep up with cleaning.
“Maybe it’s my fault and I need to be better at oversight and make sure everything is done consistently right,” Chen said, adding that she’s ready for re-inspection which is scheduled for Friday.
********************
David Wong's Pan Asian is a repeat offender. The restaurant on Durango Drive near Desert Inn Road made its first Dirty Dining appearance six months ago.
Now, it's back after an imminent health hazard closure on Aug. 27.
David Wong's was shut down for a multi-generational cockroach infestation after the inspector saw roaches throughout the facility, including inside boxes where to-go bags were stored.
There was also no sanitizer in the sanitizer bucket or on the cloth towel being used to wipe down the cutting board.
Washed cherry tomatoes were put back in their original container and there was excessive dirt and old food under and around equipment.
David Wong's was re-inspected Sept. 8 and got a three-demerit A grade.
A message left for the owner was not immediately returned.
********************
Shape Up Vegas on Civic Center Drive and Cheyenne Avenue in North Las Vegas was shut down Aug. 24 for the imminent health hazard of no hot water.
The inspector also found a carton of raw eggs stored in a cupboard at 75 degrees.
The ice scoop handle was touching the ice cubes, a bottle of bleach was stored over food, there was a hole in one of the walls and no food thermometer on site.
Shape Up Vegas was re-inspected Aug. 25 and reopened with a zero-demerit A grade.
Owner Alma Leticia Perez Lopez did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
********************
Click here to see the health report for Yummy Box Cafe.
Click here to see the health report for Shape Up Vegas.
Click here to see the health report for David Wong's Pan Asian.
