Eleven local food service establishments โ seven restaurants, a supermarket, a bakery and two convenience stores โ received ratings of โprovisionalโ or โfailโ during Pima County health inspections in January.
One failed three inspections in January, and two failed their reinspections, but the rest passed.
Hereโs what you need to know:
Ali Baba Restaurant
2545 E. Speedway
- History: Mixed ratings over the years, but received both โprovisionalโ and โfailโ ratings last September.
- What the inspector saw: Eleven critical violations were noted during a Jan. 8 inspection, causing the restaurant to receive a โprovisionalโ rating. Violations included food items above or below safe temperatures, problems with handwashing and dirty equipment stored as clean. The inspector also found an employeeโs nasal spray that was stored above onions; and โrodent droppings throughout the facility.โ
- Follow-up: Failed Jan. 19 and Jan. 29, when numerous items had not been corrected during inspections required as part of the restaurantโs provisional status.
- Response: โ(The health department) came a couple of times, but everything is fine now,โ said shift manager
- Amir Panah
- . Ali Baba eventually passed on Feb. 19.
Cattletown Steakhouse and Saloon
3141 E. Drexel Road
- History: Consistently received โexcellentโ and โgoodโ ratings since 2002.
- What the inspector saw: Five critical violations were noted during a Jan. 29 inspection, including temperatures issues, improper dishwashing technique and a โshrimp peeler machine stored as clean, encrusted with food debris.โ The restaurant received a โprovisionalโ rating.
- Follow-up: Passed Feb. 4.
- Response: Declined to comment.
Chicken Nuevo
3012 E. Grant Road
- History: Failed an inspection in November 2013. Received passing ratings since.
- What the inspector saw: Improper food storage, a lack of date marking on prepared food, and issues with safe temperatures earned the restaurant a โprovisionalโ rating on Jan. 26. Among the seven critical violations was an โemployee observed handling trash can lid with gloved hands and then returning to food prep.โ
- Follow-up: Failed Feb. 5.
- Response: No manager or owner was available for comment.
Le Caveโs Bakery
1219 S. Sixth Ave.
- History: Received a โprovisionalโ rating in October, and was closed briefly by the health department because the building was found to be in major disrepair. Since it reopened, Le Caveโs failed two more inspections in October and another in December.
- What the inspector saw: One critical violation was noted during the Jan. 22 inspection, but any violation, including incomplete repair work, constitutes a โfailโ when a license is on provisional status. Le Caveโs has until April 8 to complete the work.
- Follow-up: Reinspection hasnโt yet occurred.
- Response: โWeโre getting all the repairs taken care of and slowly getting back to where we were,โ manager
- Tiffany Molina
- told the Star in December.
Lee Lee Oriental Supermarket
1990 W. Orange Grove Road
- History: โGoodโ and โexcellentโ ratings since 2010, but received a โprovisionalโ rating during a December inspection.
- What the inspector saw: During a Jan. 13 visit, the inspector saw an employee drop a glove on the ground, then put it on and handle food, and also observed other problems with handwashing. The two critical violations and the fact that the provisional fee hadnโt been paid earned the market a โfail.โ
- Follow-up: Passed Jan. 16.
- Response: โIn response to the recent rating for the supermarket and meat market at the Lee Lee International Supermarket Tucson location, we immediately undertook employee training and updated store signage,โ Chief Financial Officer
- Kelly Brendel
- said. โThe location has been reinspected and successfully passed the follow-up inspection with all noted issues corrected.โ
Los Betos Mexican Food
7203 E. Golf Links Road
- History: Has received consistently โgoodโ and โexcellentโ ratings since 2000.
- What the inspector saw: Six critical violations were noted during a Jan. 14 inspection, earning the restaurant a โfail.โ Handwashing violations, issues with dish cleaning and sanitation, and food preparation areas in disrepair were noted. The inspection report also noted โa can opener, knives, pots, pans, potato peeler, cheese slicer and sugar scoop were found to be encrusted with dried food debris.โ
- Follow-up: Passed Jan. 27.
- Response: Owner or manager was not available to comment.
New China Super Buffet
1160 N. Wilmot Road
- History: Mixed ratings over the years, but has received four โfailโ or โprovisionalโ ratings since 2000, most recently in December.
- What the inspector saw: Three critical violations were noted during a Jan. 4 inspection, earning the restaurant a โfailโ as part of its provisional status. The inspector noted issues with safe food temperatures, cross-contamination of raw meats, and missing verification of parasite destruction for the restaurantโs sushi salmon.
- Follow-up: Passed Jan. 14.
- Response: Owner was not available to comment.
Tortilleria y Panaderia Real
1427 S. Fourth Ave.
- History: Has received โexcellentโ and โgoodโ ratings since 2007.
- What the inspector saw: Five critical violations were noted during a Jan. 12 inspection, including an employee handling tortillas with bare hands, dried food debris seen on kitchen equipment, and no sanitizer in the facility, which is required for proper dish washing. The inspector also wrote: โAfter moving a bucket of honey near a bakerโs table, a pile of flour with what appeared to be dead weevils was located on the floor.โ The restaurant received a โfail.โ
- Follow-up: Failed Jan. 22.
- Response: No response at the phone number provided.
U-Like Oriental Buffet
5101 N. Oracle Road
- History: โGoodโ ratings since it opened in 2012, but received โprovisionalโ ratings in April and December.
- What the inspector saw: The restaurant received a โfailโ during a Jan. 7 inspection, after the inspector found chicken and pork stored above fish in a walk-in freezer. Due to the restaurantโs provisional status, any critical violations lead to a failed inspection.
- Follow-up: Passed Jan. 19.
- Response: No response at the phone number provided.
Circle K No. 1635
3970 N. Flowing Wells Road
- History: Has received consistently โexcellentโ and โgoodโ ratings since 2002.
- What the inspector saw: Seven critical violations were noted during a Jan. 7 inspection, including a customer seen making coffee while holding her dog in her arms. โThe dog was at counter height within inches of the coffee machine and creamer dispenser,โ the inspector wrote. In addition, the manager told the inspector that the hot dog tongs are cleaned nightly, as opposed to every four hours, as required by the health code. Circle K received a โprovisionalโ rating.
- Follow-up: Passed Jan. 26.
- Response: A representative from Circle Kโs corporate office did not respond to a request for comment.
Circle K No. 8744
9515 E. Golf Links Road
- History: Has received consistently โgoodโ and โexcellentโ ratings since 2002.
- What the inspector saw: During a Jan. 14 inspection, the convenience store received a โprovisionalโ rating after the inspector found five critical violations. An employee told the inspector that the hot dog tongs are cleaned every night, and with soap and water only. While the inspection was taking place, a customer entered the store with a dog off-leash and the staff didnโt ask the customer to leave.
- Follow-up: Passed Jan. 19.
- Response: A representative from Circle Kโs corporate office did not respond to a request for comment.
