How to Pass a Restaurant Health Inspection or Even Improve Your Scores

Health inspection is not aimed at closing down your restaurant, it’s rather conducted to make sure that your restaurant is all the regulations. In fact, it’s a pure matter of public safety.

If you’re just starting your way in a restaurant business, health inspections can be stressful and frustrating because you do not know all of the food codes. But once you’ve got that general idea of the health codes and what is recommended, you can boost your restaurant inspection scores easily.

Steps to Prevent Poor Food Safety

First thing you’re gonna need to do is learn which common health code violations are and how to correct them. An inspection checklist can help, but following all the health codes is impportant, too.

To prevent a safety violation you’ll need to:

• Maintain ingredient temperatures. Foods that are in temperature ranges of 41°F and 135°F are susceptible to bacteria growth.
• Prevent cross contamination through proper food storage. Produce and meats should be at different locations in the refrigerator, too.
• Clean and sanitize all work spaces. One of the most common safety violations is poor kitchen sanitization. Employees should clean all kitchen surfaces to ensure that they’re free from debris, dirt and residue.
• Maintain proper personal hygiene levels. Kitchens must be stocked with hand soap and paper towels. Hair nets and disposable gloves are also recommended.

But there are a lot of factors that go into a restaurant health inspection. When you know what the inspector is looking for, it’s a lot easier to keep your restaurant from a safety violation.

What Do Health Inspectors Look for in a Restaurant?

Food violations are not the only things that inspectors look for during inspections. The inspector will be looking for a bunch of critical and non-critical items, too. You’ll want to ensure that all items are up to standards, but always start with the critical items first.

Critical Items During an Inspection

• Proper handwashing by employees
• Food sources (all food should come from approved sources)
• Rapid chilling techniques employed with cooked foods
• Dishwashers have the appropriate sanitizer concentration
• Foods are not cross-contaminated

These items are a red flag, and inspectors will deduct points and cite your restaurant for a safety violation if you fail any of the above inspections.

Non-Critical Items

These items can become a serious issue, but they will not lead to foodborne illnesses which is what a health department inspection is all about.

• Valid operator permit
• Properly cleaned walls
• Properly cleaned ceilings
• Properly cleaned floors
• Changing or break areas outside of the kitchen
• Labeled food storage containers
• Calibrated meat thermometers

Inspectors will also be considering the knowledge of your staff and managers. Keep the following in mind:

• Owners must know local health codes
• Management must have current training on food safety practices
• Employees must have knowledge of food preparation and handling techniques

An inspector is within their right to ask employees and owners questions about food safety and sanitization.

Inspectors will also take into consideration the health of employees. Employees who come in sick should not be handling food, and it may be best to send employees home in this case. Person-to-person contact is also not recommended because it’s the leading cause of spreading illness. Employees who are sick may cause customers to become sick, too.

What Happens When a Restaurant Fails a Health Inspection?

If an inspection is failed, you may have to pay fines or penalties. There’s also the risk of the restaurant being shut down in the most severe cases. The violations that can lead to this are:

• Rodent infestation
• Sewage leaks
• Insect infestation
• Mold on food

If your restaurant receives a poor score, you can request a re-inspection within a 5- to 45-day period. Your plan should be to correct as many violations as possible at this time. Review the violations that the inspector noted and make changes accordingly.

Determine how violations occurred and put preventative measures in place to stop a reoccurrence. With simple, precise steps, you can improve your restaurant’s health inspection score.

Source: https://mcdonaldpaper.com/blog/secrets-of-passing-restaurant-health-inspections