Iowa Restaurants and Stores Cited for Food Safety Violations

Last month, state and county inspectors issued citations to Iowa restaurants and grocery stores for hundreds of food safety violations. Some facilities had to close down as a result.

When restaurants fail to adhere to food safety rules, it may cause customers to become seriously ill. Iowa Department of Inspections and Appeals is the organization responsible for handling inspections at restaurants and other establishments that sell food within the state.

Hundreds of violations were found at Iowa restaurants and grocery stores, including in Ames, Coralville, Davenport, Des Moines, Forest City, Hinton, Marshalltown, Sioux City, Thompson, Urbandale, Waterloo, and West Des Moines.

These are just a small example of the food safety violations inspectors found:

• A restaurant’s walk-in cooler too warm to ensure food safety
• Bacon left out for food prep measuring 72 degrees
• Food products, including bagged cheese products, which had expired
• Milk steamer with a build-up of dried milk inside of it
• An unknown black substance found inside a drink dispenser
• A dead insect lying on top of a macaroni and cheese package
• Walk-in coolers that were littered with food debris
• Thawed fish sitting in a bucket with no type of temperature control
• Multiple live “adult and juvenile” roaches and flies throughout a dining room area

The Courier’s report included further details of food safety violations found at many Iowa restaurants and grocery stores, including these:

• Casey’s General Store in Hinton – Both of the managers in charge at the time of the inspection claimed to have “no idea” what the inspector was talking about. This led to a citation and also to a new requirement: all persons in charge of a shift must be certified food protection managers.
• Eastside Eddie’s Neighborhood Bar & Grill in Des Moines – During a visit on August 31, an inspector discovered grinder meat holding 122 degrees – not hot enough to ensure food safety. The meat was immediately discarded. However, there were multiple other food safety violations at this facility. For instance, the interior of an ice machine was described as “visibly soiled” and a package holding rodent-pesticide pellets was stored above sealed containers of condiments.
• QC Dynasty Buffet in Davenport – Inspectors observed workers attempting to unclog a kitchen drain using a tool to “snake out” the clog. This led to dirty sewage and other wastewater splattering onto open food containers. Dirty water also contaminated nearby bulk foods, which were discarded as a result.
• Hy-Vee Food Store – This facility was cited for a repeat violation. The citation was for expired cans of Similac Advance Optigro baby formula. Another repeat violation at this facility involved a cooked batch of sushi rice. The facility failed to provide the required corresponding documentation of pH monitoring to ensure food safety.
• Golden Bowl Chinese Restaurant in Sioux City – Inspectors found no certified food protection manager on staff and multiple continuous violations noted on previous reports. Additionally, among other food safety violations, several cooked items were stored in a cardboard box that previously held raw chicken.

You can find and read the full report of food safety violations assessed on the Iowa Department of Inspections & Appeals website.

Despite the serious nature of these violations, inspectors issued this reminder to the public: The violations they find and describe in their reports are a live snapshot of these facilities. In many cases, the violations are corrected immediately.

Call Our Firm if You Need Legal Help

At PKSD, we are ready to help when you need to seek compensation for a personal injury. If someone’s negligence in a restaurant or grocery store caused you or a loved one to become ill, you may have a legal case.

Call our law offices to discuss your situation and learn how we may be able to help. Our Milwaukee-area personal injury lawyers have been representing injury victims for decades, recovering millions in compensation on their behalf. We also handle cases in Iowa and New Mexico.

Initial consultations are completely free, and if you choose to hire our firm, there is nothing to pay up front or while we work on your case. We only get paid if you do.

Experienced Lawyers. Proven Results.  414-333-3333