Low-scoring Knoxville restaurant improves for reinspection

Low-scoring Knoxville restaurant improves for reinspection

By DON DARE
Food for Thought Reporter

KNOXVILLE (WATE) -- When a restaurant gets a bad health inspection grade, the inspector will return within a week to ten days, sometimes sooner. 

That was the case for the restaurant that received the worst grade of the week.

Niro's Gyros, 711 17th Street - Grade: 54

A grade below 70 is considered a unsanitary. One of the reasons Niro's earned a 54 was because the inspector discovered fruit flies and gnats in the kitchen.

Chicken was found out of temperature. It was at 50 degrees when it should have been 41 or below. 

It was no wonder the food wasn't at the right temperature. The inspector writes there was no thermometer in the cooler.  

Also at Niro's, raw chicken was stored over deli meat.  Raw food, which has bacteria in it because it's not cooked, is supposed to be kept in a separate area to prevent the potential for cross-contamination. 

The inspector also noticed that the microwave was dirty. So were the floors in the restaurant.

Niro's Gyros was later re-inspected and the new score is a 77.   

Sapphire Restaurant and Bar, 428 S. Gay Street - Grade: 61

Here, the inspector writes, food temperatures were off.

The water temperature of the dishwasher wasn't hot enough.

And a toxic chemical was too close to food items.

The inspector found several items were dirty at Sapphire's. The microwave needed to be cleaned, and the floors and shelves were dirty, The men's room also needed some attention.

Last week we reported that Mimi's on Parkside Drive received a 63. The restaurant has been re-inspected and the new grade is an 86.   

Top grades of the week:

• Elavon, 7300 Chapman Highway - Grade: 89
• Kitchen Express, 220 Bridgewater Road - Grade: 89
• Rita's Bakery, 3023 Tazewell Pike - Grade: 88
• Subway, 11342 Parkside Drive - Grade: 88

Remember, the inspection score is a snapshot of conditions at a restaurant at the time of the inspection.