A diner in southwest Ocala was forced to temporarily shut down last week after roaches were spotted during a health inspection.
The Golden Spoon Diner, which is located at 5400 SW College Road, Suite 101 in Ocala, was forced to close its doors on Monday, February 12, after a health inspector found a total of 18 violations, including three that involved roach activity, according to a report that was filed with the Florida Department of Business and Professional Regulation.
In the report, the health inspector noted that five live roaches were found near the kitchen, along with “roach excrement and/or droppings.” Marks resembling “black pepper” were also observed on the wall underneath the prep table in the kitchen.
Several dead roaches were also found on the premises, including one dead roach next to the ice machine in the kitchen, another dead roach on an outlet in the wall near the prep table, and two dead roaches on the floor in the “ware wash area.”
Other violations cited in the report, ranging from high priority to basic, include:
- An employee in the kitchen touching their apron and then breading fish without washing their hands.
- Food for employees being stored on a shelf over sauces in the reach-in cooler located in the server station.
- An opened water bottle being stored on the prep table in the kitchen.
- An employee wearing a bracelet while cooking in the kitchen.
- The interior of the microwave being soiled with food debris.
- The wall behind the fryers being soiled with grease.
- Several packages of fish in the reach-in cooler being thawed when the instructions state to leave the fish frozen until time of use.
- An employee’s prescription medication being stored on a shelf above spinach in the walk-in cooler.
- Two bottles of degreaser chemicals being stored on a shelf with condiments in the server station.
- No towels at the sink in the ware wash area and no soap in the server station.
- No hot water available at a sink in the server station. The report states that an on-duty manager corrected this issue by turning on the hot water underneath the sink.
The restaurant remained closed after the initial inspection, and the health inspector returned the next day. During two follow-up inspections that were conducted on Tuesday, February 13, a total of 10 dead roaches were found, along with nine live roaches in and around the kitchen.
The report stated that an on-duty manager killed the roaches and cleaned the area.
The Golden Spoon Diner was forced to keep its doors closed following the second inspection. When the health inspector returned on Wednesday, February 14, all inspection standards were met, and the diner was permitted to reopen.