A dirty Waffle House & live insects in kitchen: Charlotte ‘B’ restaurant scores (2/28)

A Charlotte area restaurant received a “B” grade from the Mecklenburg County Health Department for numerous health violations, including the presence of insects and dirty dishes.

▪ The Imperial Treasure (1826 Windsor Square Dr.) in Matthews received a score of 86.5% during an inspection on Monday, Feb. 24.

Violations the restaurant was cited for include:

• Employees putting on gloves without washing hands

• Raw squid stored behind ready-to-eat foods

• Bowls stacked as clean with food residue

• Chicken in hot holding held below required temperature

• Cans of WD-40 stored with food items

• Live insect in kitchen

This the restaurant’s first “B” grade.

Mecklenburg County sanitation scores

The Mecklenburg County sanitation grades database shows that at least 173 restaurant inspections were completed Feb. 21-27.

▪ Most restaurants received an A grade, or a score of at least 90%.

▪ Two restaurants received a B grade, or a score of at least 80% but lower than 90%.

▪ Waffle House (3309 Queen City Dr.) received a score of 87% during an inspection on Tuesday, Feb. 25.

• The restaurant was in violation of 9 standards, including utensils with food debris and chili in hot holding below required temperature.

• All violations were corrected during the inspection.

• The restaurant previously scored 90.5% in October 2024.

How to search NC restaurant inspection scores

Sanitation scores and their corresponding letter grades are used in North Carolina to assess restaurants’ adherence to rules and standards intended to mitigate and prevent the spread of food-borne illnesses.

You’ve likely seen sanitation grade cards at restaurants you’ve visited, and The News & Observer previously explained what those scores mean and how they’re calculated.

According to state law, permits are immediately revoked if a restaurant receives a score of less than 70%.

You can search all restaurant inspections in Mecklenburg County at public.cdpehs.com.

This story was originally published February 28, 2025 at 10:25 AM.

Evan Moore

The Charlotte Observer

Evan Moore is a service journalism reporter for the Charlotte Observer. He grew up in Denver, North Carolina, where he previously worked as a reporter for the Denver Citizen, and is a UNC Charlotte graduate.