Rat droppings, clogged sink and wrongly stored meat: Sacramento County restaurant inspections

This week, two restaurants were shut down in Sacramento County due to improper handling of food and a backed-up sewer.

Three other restaurants received yellow placards.

A yellow placard signals two or more major violations, according to the Sacramento County Food Inspection Guide. These are typically corrected or mitigated during the inspection.

A red placard signals “imminent danger to public health and safety” and suspends the health permit until violations are corrected. This could include, but is not limited to, major vermin contamination.

Green means a restaurant passed the inspection.

The county conducts roughly 14,000 inspections a year, and 97% of all restaurants pass their inspections, Ken Casparis, a spokesman, previously told The Bee. About 1% of inspections result in a closure.

Last week, there were three restaurant closures. All establishments opened the day after being shut down.

Here are the food facility inspections for Nov. 9 through Nov. 15 as of 2 p.m. Thursday:

If an inspection listed below needs clarification, business owners can email Jacqueline Pinedo at jpinedo@sacbee.com. The Bee will publish weekly updates on health inspections across Sacramento County.

Health inspection closures

Cyber Java coffee shop at 4321 Madison Ave. in Sacramento was shut down on Wednesday. The inspection report cited 18 violations, one of which included a clogged sink.

If the sink is used it will create a “sewage overflow,” stated the Wednesday inspection.

An inspector also “observed employee rinse off colander after potato use and place (it) to air dry without properly washing with soap and sanitizing.”

A total of 20 small drain flies were observed around the floor drain beneath the ice machine, the inspection stated.

The Bee reached out Cyber Java for comment Thursday afternoon, but representatives were not available. The establishment passed its reinspection on Thursday and is allowed to reopen.

Pita Kitchen at 2989 Arden Way in Arden Arcade was shut down on Tuesday. The inspection report cited four violations, one of which included food not being stored properly.

The restaurant was closed due to lack of hot water. It can reopen once “hot water is restored,” the inspector wrote.

Raw meat was stored on a pan and placed on the floor in a walk-in, according to the Tuesday report.

The Bee reached out Pita Kitchen for comment, but representatives were not available for comment. As of Thursday, no reinspection report was available.

Yellow placard violations

The following Sacramento County restaurants had violations the week of Nov. 9 through Nov. 15 resulting in a conditional pass.

Only the dates of violations are listed. Most restaurants fully pass reinspection within 72 hours. The reports are linked. For updates on individual restaurants, you can search the EMD website here.

• Taqueria Los Compadres, 2550 Fair Oaks Blvd. in Arden Arcade, had three violations on Wednesday.
• Tu Quy Cafe and Restaurant, 6519 Savings Place in Sacramento, had 12 violations on Monday.
• The Citizen Hotel, 926 J St. in Sacramento, had nine violations on Monday. One of the violations included rodent droppings that were found in various locations throughout the facility. A total of 50 droppings were found in a “hallway just outside of an engineering office,” according to the Monday report. The Bee reached out to The Citizen Hotel for comment, but representatives were not available for comment.

This story was originally published November 17, 2023 at 5:00 AM.