Local restaurants receive low inspection score due to ants, cockroaches and employee hygiene

SAN ANTONIO – Ants stepping on ready-to-serve plates and employees not washing their hands have earned some San Antonio restaurants low scores in their recent health inspections.

Pik Nik Foods

Health inspectors found a long list of violations at Pik-Nik Foods, located in the 1200 block of General McMullen.

Inspectors’ reports note that the restaurant improperly stored perishables, saying the lettuce was “in a state of decay” and the mayonnaise and raw eggs were discarded because they weren’t cold enough. The Kool-Aid jammers were dumped after they were found floating in dirty water.

Although food is usually stored in a cold room, their cooler was broken and taken out of service until it could be repaired.

Inspection failures did not end in the freezer. Flies were seen buzzing around the coffee stand and mop bucket, while a cockroach glue trap was full of cockroaches stuck on it.

Also the hand washing sink had no water and another sink was leaking water into a bucket. The inspector told them to fix both sinks.

A d

The company was also cited a second time for selling mislabeled ice packs.

The health inspector rated the restaurant at 72, barely passing with citations to be issued for re-inspection.

Panchos and Gringos

Panchos and Gringos in the 900 block of Nolan Street scored an 80 on their last inspection.

The inspector noted ants crawling on plates in the ready-to-serve pile. Even more ants were walking around the food prep area and elsewhere.

The handwashing sink hoses were not connected and employees were not seen washing their hands during the inspection, according to the report. An employee was also seen grabbing ready-to-eat toast with his bare hands.

The dishwashing temperature was only 88 degrees, well below the required 110 degrees or more.

A follow-up visit was ordered.

Taqueria Jalisciense

Taqueria Jalisciense in the 1600 block of Pleasanton Road received an inspection score of 83.

They also had problems with hand washing. The inspector did not see anyone washing their hands during his visit, and he did not see any employees changing gloves when preparing different foods.

A d

There were flies in the kitchen and thawed unwrapped pieces of raw meat in a cardboard box without any type of barrier.

Want to know who has good scores and who doesn’t? KSAT 12 has a new tool for this.

Just click on this link, and it will take you to a new mapping tool we have showing recent scores for San Antonio food businesses.

The reports are two years old and are frequently updated.

You can catch Tim BKD’s reports Thursday on the Nightbeat.

ALSO ON KSAT.COM

Watch more stories behind the kitchen door here