4 South Mississippi restaurants cited by health dept., including 2 pizza spots
Two of the four restaurants in South Mississippi cited for critical health violations since April 1 had no certified manager.
That has become a trend this year, as restaurant and fast food service owners report difficulties hiring staff. A dozen other restaurants have already been cited since the start of the year for not having a certified manager.
“These facilities were primarily marked out of compliance for either not having a staff person with manager certification or not exhibiting manager certification knowledge,” said Les Herrington, director of environmental health for the Mississippi Health Department.
“However, there are many variables that go into any inspection grade, and MSDH environmentalists work with the facilities to educate and train the employees before marking them out of compliance,” he said.
These four restaurants received a C since April 1:
Taqueria Los Gordos, 3609 Chicot St., Pascagoula, had a scheduled inspection April 22. It was cited for having no certified manager and no person in charge present who demonstrates knowledge and performs duty.
Corrected during the inspection were food separated and protected along with proper hot holding temperatures.
This was the restaurant’s first C since 2019.
Merri Mart 003, 3602 Ingalls Ave., Pascagoula, was inspected April 5 and cited for not having a certified manager. Corrected during the inspection was adequate hand-washing facilities supplied and accessible. A second inspection on April 19 showed all issues were corrected.
This was the first C dating back to 2019.
Villa Pizza, 10000 Factory Blvd., Gulfport had a scheduled inspection on April 23. The inspection showed improper plumbing backflow devices.
The last C for the restaurant was in 2019.
Pizza Hut 2207, a new construction at 624 Courthouse Road, Gulfport, was inspected April 20 for a permit. The restaurant was cited for not having food separated and protected.
A second inspection on April 21 showed the restaurant was in compliance with all health requirements.
Restaurants and other food service establishments in Mississippi are rated A if they pass the health department inspection, B if violations are corrected during the inspection, and C if the violations are critical.
To date in April, 341 restaurants and food services in South Mississippi were inspected by the health department, with 261 scoring an A, 27 a B for and 4 a C.
This story was originally published April 26, 2021 at 3:24 PM.
