Cockroaches, mouse feces all over, foods stored on floor at Wichita KS restaurants
By Amy Renee Leiker – The Wichita Eagle (TNS)
Dec. 28—An ongoing cockroach problem, a mouse infestation so bad it forced a temporary shutdown, foods stored directly on the floor, contaminated liquor, old pasta, water issues, employees who mishandled food and grimy kitchen conditions are among violations Kansas Department of Agriculture inspectors discovered during recent local safety and lodging inspections in the Wichita area.
Each week, The Eagle adds to its searchable database of failed inspections from Sedgwick County. Fifteen Wichita-area restaurants, stores, hotels and other businesses that serve or sell food or rent rooms to the public were non-compliant from Dec. 15-21.
Inspectors found few or no violations at more than 60 others deemed compliant with food safety and lodging rules.
Inspections are meant to protect the public from foodborne illnesses and other health risks. Violations are common.
Businesses can fail if they have too many problems, certain types of violations or issues that can’t be fixed right away. Most of the time, they correct issues in front of an inspector. Examples of things that can be addressed immediately are serving food that’s more than a week old, employees mishandling food and dirty kitchens.
But sometimes issues take days or weeks to correct, like pest infestations, power outages and plumbing problems. It’s rare, but a business may temporarily shut down over violations.
Places that fail are usually reinspected within 10 days.
The list in this story was compiled on Dec. 24 using information available from the state on that date. The list only contains places located in Sedgwick County, but you can search food and lodging inspection results elsewhere in Kansas at https://foodsafety.kda.ks.gov/FoodSafety/Web/Inspection/PublicInspectionSearch.aspx.
Out-of-compliance inspections
Arby’s, 4308 E. Harry in Wichita — One violation on Dec. 19 during a routine inspection. Cited for not keeping several types of cheese cold enough. Next inspection: Dec. 29.
Buffalo Wild Wings, 1918 N. Rock Road, Suite 100 in Derby — Seven violations on Dec. 16 during a routine inspection. Violations include cans of chili that weren’t labeled with their package opening dates, food debris on clean pans, utensils stored improperly, bottle of chemical that smelled like bleach wasn’t labeled with its contents, leaking hot water faucet, water in dishwasher wasn’t getting hot enough to sanitize dishes, no hot water at three-vat sink. Next inspection: Dec. 26.
Fat Ernie’s Family Dining, 2806 S. Hydraulic in Wichita — Three violations on Dec. 18 during an inspection that was a follow-up to an administrative order. Violations include several dead cockroaches on the floors, fresh and dried rodent droppings in cabinets under a soda machine and at bar in dining room, containers of “pie frosting” were stored directly on the floor, living cockroaches crawling on floors. The next inspection date wasn’t listed.
Firebirds Wood Fired Grill, 10096 E. 13th St., Suite 118 in Wichita — Eleven violations on Dec. 19 during a routine inspection. Violations include dirty surfaces, employee didn’t wash hands or change gloves between handling dirty and clean dishes, foods including soft cheese slices and raw beef weren’t kept cold enough, containers of raw and seared tuna weren’t labeled with their preparation dates, debris and cork shavings floating in bottle of rum, bartender touched drink garnishes with bare hands, restaurant was using a hand-washing sink to store soap, tomato soup wasn’t cooling down quickly enough in refrigeration, foods including soup and deviled eggs weren’t labeled with their preparation dates or were misdated, old cavatappi pasta, employee washed food container at a sink dedicated to hand-washing, no paper towels at hand-washing sink. Next inspection: Dec. 29.
KC Gas & Groceries, 1102 W. Maple in Wichita — Six violations on Dec. 19 during a routine inspection. Violations include car oil and cleaners stored on shelf above soda, no hot water at bathroom sink, “very little running water” at bathroom sink, bathroom sink was blocked with supplies and boxes, employee was storing personal shoes and belongings in a sink, no food thermometers on site, rusted-out drains at three-compartment sink, no soap at hand-washing sink. Next inspection: Dec. 29.
Mexico Viejo Mexican Restaurant & Bar, 6960 W. 21st St. in Wichita — Three violations on Dec. 18 during an inspection that was a follow-up to an administrative order. Violations include a cook who didn’t wash hands or change gloves after touching raw steak, employee washed their hands in a food preparation sink, container of chili verde wasn’t labeled with its preparation date. Next inspection: Feb. 18.
Molino’s Mexican Cuisine, 1064 N. Waco in Wichita — Five violations on Dec. 17 during a routine inspection. Violations include no water at kitchen hand-washing sink, several old foods including pork chunks and tacos pollo, no hot water at kitchen hand-washing sink, no test strips for measuring concentration of sanitizer, no food probe thermometer on site. Next inspection: Dec. 27.
Old Tokyo Steakhouse, 6821 W. Taft in Wichita — Nineteen violations on Dec. 16 during a complaint inspection. Violations include employees who didn’t wash their hands before putting on gloves to prepare food, no written procedures for cleaning up vomiting or diarrhea incidents, onions were sitting on the floor, no soap at kitchen hand-washing sink, menu was missing disclosures about undercooked steaks, rice and salad mix were sitting out at room temperature, cheesecake wasn’t cold enough in refrigeration, no paper towels at bathroom or kitchen sinks, dirty knife, mystery brown liquid in spray bottle in bathroom, bottle of sanitizer wasn’t labeled, no food probe thermometer, employee washed hands at the wrong sink, eggs sitting out at room temperature, no test strips for measuring concentration of sanitizers, build up of grime and food debris throughout restaurant, build up of grime and lobster tail shells under flat top tables in dining room, ramekins used as scoops were stored in containers of vegetables and rice, rice didn’t cool off quickly enough in refrigeration. Next inspection: Dec. 26.
Schlotzsky’s, 6507 E. Central in Wichita — Four violations on Dec. 17 during a routine inspection. Violations include containers of sliced tomatoes that were not properly date-marked, employees were touching food that’s ready to be served to customers with their bare hands, a cupboard at the drive-thru window drink station “was almost completely covered” with dead winged insects, diced tomatoes weren’t cold enough in refrigeration. Next inspection: Dec. 27.
Smash Bros #2 (mobile vendor/food truck), 9809 W. Par Lane in Wichita— Seven violations on Dec. 16 during a follow-up inspection. Violations include no paper towels at hand-washing sink, no running water at sinks, hand-washing sink was blocked with containers and other items, raw ground beef was thawing at room temperature, no food probe thermometer, no test strips to measure concentration of chlorine sanitizer, unlabeled spray bottles of chemicals. Next inspection: Jan. 30.
Sunflour Cafe & Collective, 6120 W. Central in Wichita — One violation on Dec. 19 during a routine inspection. Violations include breakfast and vegan foods that were not cold enough in refrigeration. Next inspection: Dec. 29.
Super Express Convenience Store, 2849 W. 13th St. in Wichita — Five violations on Dec. 18 during a routine inspection. Violations include mouse infestation, several snack foods and candy bars had been chewed by mice, foods were contaminated with mouse feces, pet food bags chewed up, the business didn’t immediately tell the department of agriculture about its mouse infestation and cease operating, fresh mouse droppings “too numerous to count” throughout the business, live mice seen during inspections, level of mouse infestation “was considered an imminent health hazard,” clutter in storage room created “harborage conditions” for pests, lack of pest control measures. The business closed for a few days over the deficiencies. Next inspection: Dec. 28.
Texas Roadhouse, 6707 W. Kellogg Drive in Wichita — Six violations on Dec. 16 during a routine inspection. Violations include an employee who didn’t wash hands or change gloves after touching hair and a personal drink, bag of sirloin seasoning was sitting directly below a soap dispenser, water didn’t get hot enough in the dishwasher, no sanitizer in bucket of wiping cloths, sirloin seasoning was stored in a hand-washing sink by the grill, restaurant wasn’t keeping updated logs related to chilling and reheating food. Next inspection: Jan. 16.
Toastique, 9747 E. 21st St., Suite 115 in Wichita — Six violations on Dec. 18 during its first operational inspection after licensing. Violations include menus that were missing consumer advisory reminders about the risks of eating undercooked foods, containers of milk weren’t labeled with their package opening dates, bucket of sanitizer and produce were blocking the hand-washing sinks from being used, meat slicer wasn’t being cleaned and sanitized often enough, containers of onion jam weren’t labeled with their preparation dates, sanitizer testing strips were ruined and couldn’t be used. Next inspection: Dec. 28.
Yum Mi Express, 6254 E. 37th St. North, Suite 160 in Bel Aire — Eleven violations on Dec. 20 during its first operational inspection after licensing. Violations include containers of raw chicken that were stored on a box of raw broccoli, raw pork was stored above bean sprouts and mint leaves, fresh rodent droppings on floor by sugar and flour, build up of grease on and below fryer, items were stored inside of a hand-washing sink, employee touched bean sprouts with bare hands, employee put a glove that had been dropped on the floor back into a box with new gloves, raw pork was thawing at room temperature, the food probe thermometer wasn’t calibrated correctly, no paper towels at kitchen hand-washing ink, containers of sauce and raw pork were stored directly on the ground, flour and sugar were stored in a box on the floor, greasy floor. Next inspection: Dec. 30.
See a problem? Here’s where to complain
If you see problems at a food or lodging establishment, you can file a complaint.
To notify the state about unsavory or questionable conditions anywhere that serves or sells food to the public, email kda.fsl@ks.gov or call 785-564-6767. You can also file a complaint at www.foodsafetykansas.org.
To report an illness you think was caused by a restaurant, food or event where food was served, contact the Kansas Department of Health and Environment at 877-427-7317 or www.foodsafetykansas.org.
Complaints about conditions at hotels and motels can be submitted at www.agriculture.ks.gov/public-resources/comments-complaints/lodging-complaint.
For more information about foodborne illnesses, visit www.foodsafety.gov.
Note: Sometimes addresses listed — especially for mobile vendors and food trucks — are not where food is actually served to the public. Contact those establishments directly for specific service locations.
The violation summaries were compiled and drafted with the help of AI tools. They were fact-checked for accuracy and edited by Wichita Eagle journalists.
This story was originally published December 28, 2024, 5:49 AM.
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