No Polk County restaurants were closed down by state inspectors, and only one received a violation related to pests from Dec. 4 to 17.
Ten Lakeland restaurants failed to meet inspection standards for a wide variety of violations.
The Florida Department of Business and Professional Regulation says that an inspection report is “a snapshot of conditions present at the time of the inspection,” and notes that it’s not necessarily an indication of long-term conditions.
Almost perfect
It’s tough to get a perfect score on an inspection. So many little things can go wrong. That’s why we like to highlight the food vendors that were almost perfect – to show what one little violation stood in the way of perfection. During the latest two-week period, there were 24 such food vendors, a mix of brick-and-mortar stores and mobile vendors such as food trucks.
We’ll start with what might be the biggest heart-breaker: On Dec. 8, Mr. & Mrs. Crab at 3770 Lakeside Village Court, Lakeland would’ve been perfect if not for a broken lid on an outdoor garbage can. The facility passed inspection.
Here’s a look at the others:
- Domino’s #4916, 5315 U.S. 98 N., Lakeland: On Dec. 14, the restaurant received a single violation when an inspector noticed unspecified “grease, food debris, dirt, or dust” on top of a pizza oven. The restaurant passed inspection.
- Cinemark Lakeland Square Mall, 3800 U.S. 98 N., Suite 910, Lakeland: On Dec. 14, the movie theater’s only violation was for food debris on a green pizza cart. It passed inspection.
- Yogurt Mountain inside Books-A-Million, 1520 Town Center Drive, Lakeland: On Dec. 13, an inspector noted a case of 16-ounce cups stored on the floor in the storage/dishwasher area. The vendor passed inspection.
- Subway #64029, 214 E. Canal St., Mulberry: On Dec. 13, the restaurant’s only violation was debris under an hand sink cabinet. The restaurant met standards.
- Subway At Plantation Square, 5395 N. Socrum Loop Road, Lakeland: On Dec. 11, an inspector noted a cutting board had enough cut marks that it was no longer cleanable. The restaurant met standards.
- Sandwich Factory, 5024 Lunn Road, Lakeland: On Dec. 7, the restaurant’s only violation was for debris on the kitchen floor. The operator cleaned it quickly, but barely missed perfection. The restaurant met standards.
- Papa Johns Pizza #2420, 6747 U.S. 98 N., Lakeland: On Dec. 6, something was amiss about the utensil in the cut onions on the pizza assembly line. It was “not stored with handle above top of food within a closed container,” according to the report. The offense was corrected, but the violation remained. The restaurant passed inspection.
- Marco’s Pizza, 3005 Duff Road, Lakeland: On Dec. 6, received a single violation for “Handwash sink used for purposes other than handwashing” when an inspector noted an unspecified container in the sink. It was removed. The restaurant passed inspection.
- Chuck E Cheese vending machine at 3558 U.S. 98 N., Lakeland: A vending machine at the restaurant did not display its hotel and restaurant license on Dec. 5. It passed inspection.
- El Huarache, mobile food vendor, 2009 George Jenkins Blvd., Lakeland: On Dec. 4, the vendor’s only violation was food debris on a can opener. It passed inspection.