Cooked food on the ground yields ‘B’ grade for North Charlotte restaurant
A north Charlotte restaurant received a “B” grade from the Mecklenburg County Health Department for numerous health violations, including cooked food on the ground and improper employee attire.
La Michoacana Taqueria Y Tortilleria (5400 Nevin Rd. in Charlotte) received an 81.5% score during an inspection on Thursday, March 26.
Inspectors cited the restaurant after finding a “large pot of barbacoa sitting on the ground,” according to the report.
A manager told inspectors “it had just been cooked and there was no room to place it anywhere else but it would be placed back on burners once the burners were free,” the report says.
Other violations the restaurant was cited for include:
- Employee chewing gum throughout entire inspection
- Employee washing hands for less than 20 seconds
- Employee not wearing head covering
- A grater and ice stored in a handwashing sink
- Food debris and residue on multiple dishes stored as clean
- Multiple food items with no date marks
This is the restaurant’s first “B” grade.
Mecklenburg County sanitation scores
The Mecklenburg County sanitation grades database shows that at least 117 restaurant inspections were completed March 20-26.
▪ Most restaurants received an A grade, or a score of at least 90%.
▪ Two restaurants received B grades, or scores of at least 80% but lower than 90%.
▪ Taqueria Number 1 (3619 E. Independence Blvd.) received a score of 87% during an inspection on Friday, March 20.
- The restaurant was in violation of 17 standards, improper food storage and missing labels on squeeze bottles.
- Most violations were corrected during the inspection.
- The restaurant previously scored 92.5% in December.
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.
Most common restaurant violations
The Charlotte Observer previously spoke to Adam Dietrich, a local food safety expert, about five of the most common food safety violations restaurants get dinged for during health inspections:
- Handwashing lapses are common: Inspectors frequently cite workers for skipping required handwashing or recontaminating hands, a major risk for spreading illnesses like norovirus, Salmonella and E. coli.
- “Performative” glove use causes problems: Gloves are often misused, either by not changing them between tasks or worn instead of washing hands, which can spread bacteria just as easily as bare hands.
- 41°F is the cold-holding cutoff: The North Carolina Food Code requires cold foods to be held at 41 degrees or below, since bacteria multiply rapidly above that threshold and can reach dangerous levels within hours.
- Improper storage leads to cross-contamination: Limited space and poor organization can result in raw food juices dripping onto other foods, a known cause of outbreaks, prompting strict storage rules in the food code.
- Lack of food safety training costs points: Restaurants are often penalized for missing certifications or inadequate staff training in hygiene, allergens and safe food handling, issues experts say are preventable with proper education.
