Flying insects found at chain restaurant has since been fixed, but other violations have not

(WWBT) - China Taste can be found on North Courthouse Road in North Chesterfield. In a recent inspection, the restaurant had three priority, two priority foundation and one core violations.

The restaurant manager said they fixed all of the issues the inspector had, which included storing raw foods over ready-to-eat foods and debris on racks inside the walk-in cooler.

In a recent inspection at the Applebee’s on Bell Creek Road in Mechanicsville, the restaurant had three priority violations, two priority foundation violations, like finding flying insects in the back of the kitchen, and nine core violations, like finding the floor in the walk-in cooler among other areas not clean.

In an inspection about a month later, the restaurant fixed the issue with the bugs but didn’t clean the areas.

NBC12 tried reaching out to the Applebee’s to ask a few questions. First, we were told the person we needed to talk to wasn’t there. When trying to call again, no one answered. NBC12 then reached out to corporate and was told to contact a media relations person. NBC12 called them and left a message, but initially didn’t hear back.

Dennis Benson of Potomac Family Dining, and Applebee’s franchisee, later said that “a clean, well-run restaurant is what our guests deserve and expect. The items identified in this report were immediately corrected by our local team upon identification.”

Finally, our Hall of Fame Award winner: Bravo Rocco Italian Cafe in Stony Point Fashion Park. The coffee shop opened back in August of 2018; since then it’s had nothing but perfect inspections.

“Whenever we get hit with a lot of customers, we always take a moment to stop, clean, regroup and then keep going,” said Iris Smith, owner.

Smith says the restaurant is known for its Italian flare and favorite sandwiches, like the turkey pesto and the Caprese.

“I was actually born in Italy, this was the atmosphere I grew up in and it’s dedicated to my dad," said Smith.

This is how the Virginia Department of Health describes its violations on its website:

• Priority identifies a provision in the Regulations whose application contributes directly to the elimination, prevention, or reduction to an acceptable level, hazards associated with foodborne illness or injury and there is no other provision that more directly controls the hazard.
• Priority foundation identifies a provision in the Regulation whose application supports, facilitates, or enables one or more Priority items.
• Core identifies a provision that is not Priority or Priority foundation and that usually relates to general sanitation, operational controls, sanitation standard operating procedures (SSOPs), facilities, equipment, or general maintenance.

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