NEW YORK (1010 WINS) -- Some business owners in Queens claim they are being harassed by the city's health department.Kelly's Bar, located on Crescent Street in Astoria, was slapped with a dozen summonses after receiving 132 violation points during its last inspection earlier this month.
The health department says it's only doing its job.
An inspection report released by the department shows Kelly's Bar received critical violations for evidence of mice, using pesticides not in accordance with labels or applicable laws, not providing a hand washing facility near or in a food preparation area and toilet room; raw, cooked or prepared food that was adulterated, contaminated, cross-contaminated and/or not discarded in accordance with the HACCP (Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Points) plan, and not having a supervisor on duty with a food protection certificate.
Sondra Tesseman, who has owned the bar for 40 years, says each violation could cost her anywhere from $200 to $2,000. Tesseman claims the health department closed the bar down for six days for having low water pressure in a kitchen she says doesn't get used because food is not served at the establishment.
Tesseman says it was the first time the bar has ever been closed down for a health violation and believes the cash-strapped city is sending health inspectors to the area to raise money at the expense of business owners.
Kelly's Bar is not the only one suffering.
Owners of a neighboring doughnut shop say they have also been fined by the health department for minor violations including having signs posted in a wrong spot.
Inspection reports for Gleason's and The Doral Coffee Shop show the establishments received several violations, including evidence of live mice, rats and roaches.
6 comments:
See what happens when graft isn't paid to inspectors.
"...receiving 132 violation points during its last inspection earlier this month."
Holy cripes my head is about to explode!
Do you know how FAR out of the norm this is? Anything near 100 points is padlock-and-go-home time (as happened to my favorite That restaurant last week).
The -worst- of our places gets around 27 points mostly for b-s items like inadequate hot water in bathrooms. t-p runs out, no thermometer for meat at grill etc.
If you can't keep a place in decent shape GET OUT OF THE BUSINESS.
NYC Dept of health inspection site:
http://167.153.150.32/RI/web/index.do;jsessionid=3D16B2434E13AFC783E1E451DB231664?method=goldenAppleList
They should target food businesses - we are the consumer of these establishments. Do you want to get sick - how many of us have?
May of these food joints preparers of food are barely capable or educated enough to speak their own languages yet alone abide by health safety laws and food handling practices.
Most of us see for example Chinese take out joints and watch the cook whip up food usually directly in front of you. Is your Kitchen cleaner or does the preparer look like he give a care about how he handles food? Does the cashier handle money while picking up food to throw in the 10x grease broiler without washing their hands?
Well this is common from Burger King to the pizza guy, are they abiding by the law?
Contract hepatitus B or C and you will realize why this subject is important to you and your family.
Could the Health Department possibly shut down the whore houses/illegal boarding houses up and down Bowne Street in Flushing:)
My sources tell me Lino's Restaurants typically have far more than 132 violations each...
But, he's just too smart to get caught! These underhanded and greedy "Big Restaurant" guys are 3 steps ahead of these feeble little beaurocrats. Their "tricks of the trade" go back generations to the "Old Country". No little G man can keep up his devious money grubbing tactics!
The well trained "Selfish Capitalist Mind" like Lino's has no problem skirting these problems. And the one's he gets tired of pulling the wool over...he just pulls out his Knot Roll and buys off! The scoundrel has all that money to burn that he has raped off the backs of the proletariat all these years!
Stay away from the Red Snapper! It's really Halibut sprinkled with Paprika!
It is hard to know who to believe. My father bankrolled a countryman who opened a very famous bar-restaurant in Suffolk County.
When I asked him why he did not open his own place instead, he explained that Sanitation Inspectors would take the lid off a garbage can and then write up the restuarant.
He told me if anyone ever did such a thing to him, he would probably murder him and go to jail.
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