Rotting food, reused dirty bowl, cockroaches, rodents at Wichita KS restaurants
Dead and living cockroaches, rodent feces, cooks who didn't wash their hands, a restaurant that tried to reuse a dirty bowl, rotting food, greasy kitchens and more are among violations Kansas Department of Agriculture inspectors discovered during recent food safety and lodging inspections in the Wichita area.
Each week, The Eagle adds to its searchable database of failed inspections from Sedgwick County. Ten restaurants, hotels and other businesses were non-compliant with state rules from March 30 to April 5.
Inspectors found few or no violations at more than 50 other businesses 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. But 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 ingredients and dirty kitchens. Issues that take longer to correct include 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 April 7 using information available from the state on that date. The list contains places 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.
Blue Fin Sake Bar & Sushi, 255 N. Washington in Wichita — Four violations on April 4 during an inspection that was a follow-up to an administrative order. Violations include several packages of raw fish thawing in intact vacuum packaging in the walk-in cooler, no hot water at the hand-washing sink next to the drink station, a bowl was too big to fit in the sink where dishes are clean and sanitized, a spray bottle of Simple Green cleaner was stored with its nozzle nearly touching glassware. Next inspection: June 5.
Chili's Grill & Bar, 7887 E. Central in Wichita — Nine violations on April 3 during a complaint inspection. Violations include employees' personal beverages sitting on preparation boards and near customer food, mashed potatoes weren't kept hot enough, several food containers in clean storage were soiled with sticker residue, the restaurant only has one hand-washing sink available in the kitchen for all cooks and employees to use, portioned bags of onions and bell peppers for fajitas weren't kept cold enough, rotting lemons in walk-in cooler, a line cook touched ready-to-eat onions with bare hands, containers of pre-fried chicken wings and canned oranges weren't labeled with their preparation or package opening dates. Next inspection: April 14.
Fat Ernie's Family Dining, 2806 S. Hydraulic in Wichita — Three violations on April 4 during a modified complaint inspection. Violations include rodent droppings in the cabinet under the soda fountain, salad mix and cottage cheese weren't kept cold enough in refrigeration, dead cockroaches on an old soap dispenser in the bar and two dead cockroaches on the kitchen floor. Next inspection: April 24.
IHOP, 3204 N. Maize Road in Wichita — Eight violations on March 31 during a routine inspection. Violations include plastic lids soiled with pancake batter that were in clean storage, live roach under the soda fountain machine, gallons of milk weren't labeled with their package opening dates, food and debris buildup under the soda fountain machines and hand-washing sink, a cook cracked a raw egg and then touched ready-to-eat food without changing gloves or washing hands, butter wasn't kept cold enough, containers of lettuce and egg whites weren't labeled with their package opening dates, lids in clean storage had holes and deep cracks. Next inspection: April 10.
Just a Sip, 2126 N. Webb in Wichita — Three violations on April 2 during a follow-up inspection. Violations include boba that wasn't kept cold enough, issue with how the washing and sanitizing sink was set up, no usable sanitizer testing kit on site. Next inspection: April 14.
New Good Fortune Chinese Restaurant, 709 N. Baltimore in Derby — Seven violations on April 1 during a complaint inspection. Violations include soda machine nozzles with a buildup of a brown substance on the inside surface, made-on-site cream cheese mix wasn't labeled with its preparation date, dirty handles on scoops used for rice, restaurant staff rinsed a dirty bowl and tried to use it again instead of washing and sanitizing it, raw bacon and raw chicken were stored over ready-to-eat produce in a reach-in cooler, heavy buildup of grease and food debris on cooking equipment including wok and fryer, dirty shelving and containers, mold and food residue around sinks, heavy accumulation of grease and other debris under cooking equipment and soiling walls, dust buildup on walls, grease and peeling paint on back door. Next inspection: May 1.
Sharky's Island Bites, 8918 W. 21st St., Suite 800 in Wichita — Five violations on April 1 during a modified complaint inspection. Violations include a cook handling single-use containers without washing hands after cracking a raw shell egg and handling food on the grill, no paper towels at the front counter hand-washing sink, several boxes of food stored directly on the floor in the walk-in freezer, no hand soap at the front counter hand-washing sink, spam with cooked rice wasn't kept hot enough. Next inspection: April 11.
Smash Bros (mobile vendor/food truck), 9809 W. Par Lane in Wichita — The business was deemed out of compliance on April 4 during what was supposed to be an inspection that was a follow-up to an administrative order. The inspector was unable to complete a typical follow-up inspection, though, because the person in charge of the truck refused to let the inspector inside, saying the truck wasn't open and wasn't currently serving food or 'doing anything.' The inspector noted that employees on the truck were preparing food and became 'contentious and gave a lot of pushback' to any of his comments, according to the report. Next inspection: April 11.
Smoothie King, 3236 N. Rock Road, Suite 200 in Wichita — One violation on April 4 during a routine inspection. The violation involves a back flow prevention plumbing issue that could lead to water supply contamination. Next inspection: April 14.
Super East Buffet, 7607 E. Douglas in Wichita — Four violations on March 31 during a follow-up inspection. Violations include missing records related to when rice was removed from refrigeration or heat, raw ahi tuna thawing in intact vacuum packaging which can increase risk of harmful bacteria growth, produce on the salad bar including melon and coleslaw wasn't kept cold enough, large box of crab meat was stored directly below a soap dispenser. Next inspection: May 31.
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.
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To notify the state about unsavory or questionable conditions anywhere that serves or sells food to the public, email or call 785-564-6767. You can also file a complaint at 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 Complaints about conditions at hotels and motels can be submitted at For more information about foodborne illnesses, visit 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. Month-old meat, cockroach on clean pan, rodent feces at Wichita KS restaurants Pest poop by clean plates, dead bugs in liquor, bad hygiene at Wichita KS restaurants Hundreds of cockroaches, cigarette in kitchen, hair in food at Wichita KS restaurants Cooks didn't wash before prepping food, plus mouse feces, grime at Wichita KS restaurants
