07-03-2025
Nine food safety alerts posted in Champaign Co. this week
CHAMPAIGN, Ill. (WCIA) — Nine locations in Champaign County received less than satisfactory food inspections in the last seven days — including one area school.
An inspector found three risk factor/ intervention violations and one repeat risk factor/ intervention violation at Sooie Bros BBQ Joint on Feb. 27.
PREVIOUSLY: Six yellow food safety alerts posted in Champaign Co. this week
The restaurant, located at 103 W. Kirby Ave. in Champaign, was given a red placard and was told to close by the health department 'due to the lack of essential refrigeration.' The inspector said the walk-in cooler was 'not operating/in-use.'
Since the inspection, Sooie's ownership said they will be suing the Champaign County Public Health District and Director Sarah Michaels over claims of harassment. You can read more details about the suit here.
For the second inspection in a row, the inspector noted that items were removed from the freezer and not relabeled with a pull date. During the Feb. 27 inspection, the pulled pork was stored inside the steam table and the rack of ribs were stored inside the two-door cooler.
Other issues the inspector found a lack of hot water at the hand-washing sink upstairs and the dish machine not operating as a chemical dish machine (too hot for chlorine sanitizer).
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On Feb. 27, Big JJ Fish & Chicken, located at 1114 N. Market Street in Champaign, received a yellow food safety alert.
During the inspection, a health inspector found three risk factor/intervention violations and one repeat risk factor/intervention violation.
For the third time in a row, the restaurant had an issue with keeping their food at the correct temperature. Raw chicken held in the second lowest shelf of the reach in cooler was 45.3°F, while raw chicken held in the bottom shelf of the cooler was 48.9°F. The inspector's report said the bins the chicken was held in could have blocked cold air from flowing to the bottom of the unit. The chicken that was above 41°F was thrown out and the cooler was condemned.
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Other issues that the inspector noted included the thermometer in the reach-in cooler giving inaccurate readings, the mop sink was soiled with build-up, and cooked and cooled Italian beef was at 125.6°F in the hot holding unit.
A follow-up inspection will be done in 5-7 businesses days to ensure the violation was corrected.
Captain D's Seafood, located at 1409 N. Prospect Ave. in Champaign, received a yellow food safety alert on Feb. 27.
According to the health department's report, the health inspector found four risk factor/intervention violations and one repeat risk factor/intervention violation.
For the third time in a row, the restaurant had issues with keeping certain foods at the regulated temperature. Four pans of hush puppy batter, chicken batter and sour cream were found at temperatures above 41°F.
Other issues the inspector noted included the person in charge cleaned water from the cooler, did not wash his hands, carried a clean kitchen towel to the ware washing area, and put it on the cleaned and sanitized pans. They also noted that the facility is not currently using the dish machine because it's not working correctly, and a 'Condemned for Use' sticker is posted on the dish machine.
A follow-up inspection will be done in 5-7 businesses days to ensure the violations were corrected.
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Kung Fu BBQ, located at 510 E. John Street in Champaign, received a yellow food safety alert on Feb. 27. During the inspection, the health department found five risk factor/intervention violations and one repeat risk factor/intervention violation.
For the third time in a row, the inspector found food surfaces and utensils with dried food debris from the previous days. There was a knife on the knife rack with dried meat, and two knives on top of the oven with dried food. There was also a vegetable scraper with 'dried, sticky, and stringy food residue.' There was also dried meat on the slicer and on the pork grinding machine, both which had been 'partly cleaned' the day before.
Other issues the inspector noted included quarts with raw chicken stored above potatoes in the kitchen, pork belly sitting at 109°F and 98°F (which had not been properly reheated), a disinfectant chemical spray bottle was stored directly next to small cups of soy sauce, and a can of 'Raid' insecticide and a container of 'Rotella' motor oil stored in an unused reach-in freezer.
On Thursday March 6, the health department reinspected the restaurant. They found that the issues had been corrected, so the yellow placard was removed and replaced with a green placard.
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Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Elementary School, located at 1108 W. Fairview Ave. in Urbana received a yellow food safety alert on Feb. 28. During the inspection, the health department found five risk factor/intervention violations and two repeat risk factor/intervention violations.
For the third time in a row, the inspector noted issues with employees completing an activity, and then not washing their hands afterwards. For example, an employee cleaned the splashes on the sides of the hand-washing sink, then touched a sensor on the paper towel dispenser and then put on gloves for food prep. The inspector also saw the same employee pick up a loaf of bread and a bag of vegetables from the floor, but the loaf of bread on a clean food prep table and then touch clean butter papers without changing their gloves or washing their hands.
And for the second time in a row, there was not a certified food protection manager (CFPM) in the facility at the beginning of the inspection. Now, the school must show proof of enrollment in the CFPM course for two employees, or proof of CFPM coverage in the kitchen by March 14.
Other issues the inspector noted included sanitizer inside the sanitizer cloth bucket (which was being used to wipe contaminated food contact surfaces) did not show any color change on the test strip, and a container of hummus and opened bag of shredded lettuce were found without opening dates inside the two-door cooler located in front of the dry storage room.
The inspector also noted that the green placard from the last inspection was not present at the place it was posted, and that the person in charge could not find it anywhere in the facility.
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A follow-up inspection will be done in 5-7 businesses days to ensure the violations were corrected.
After two poor inspections since November of 2024, the Savory Hot Pot House has 'corrected all of the violations cited during the last routine inspection and the last follow-up inspection,' according to the health department. But, a yellow food safety alert was still posted at the business.
In November, the restaurant, located at 505 S. Neil Street in Champaign, received a yellow food safety notice. The inspector found 10 risk factor/intervention violations and five repeat risk factor/intervention violations. Some of the issues found included a gnat found dead on top of meatballs inside a cooler, raw pork stored over ready-to-eat veggies, and the dish machine that was in use during the inspection did not have chlorine attached.
At a follow up inspection in December, the food service was closed, and the health permit was suspended. Several issues were not corrected from the previous inspection, and some health code violations the inspector found included: Korean Melons inside the walk-in cooler were moldy, raw food stored above ready-to-eat food, and the dish machine was still being used without sanitizer.
On March 5 however, the health inspector found that the facility corrected all of its previous violations. Its health permit was reinstated, and a yellow placard was posted. A follow-up inspection will be completed within 10-business days to make sure the food safety plan is being followed.
On March 5, Illini Tower, located at 409 E. Chalmers Street in Champaign, received a yellow food safety alert.
According to the inspector report, there were three risk factor/intervention violations and one repeat risk factor/intervention violation.
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For the third inspection in a row, the health department found that certain foods were held above the correct temperature. Overnight oats, whipped butter and strawberry cream cheese packs, whipped cream and pizza sauce were all over 41°F.
Other issues the inspector noted included the facility using the make-table cooler to cool their pizza sauce after it was prepared, which was not approved, and the scoop in the oatmeal bin and the flour bin was stored with the handle touching the food inside of the bins.
A follow-up inspection will be done in 5-7 businesses days to ensure the violations were corrected.
Los Zarapes, located at 804 Eastwood Drive in Mahomet, received a yellow safety alert on March 5.
The inspector found seven risk factor/intervention violations and two repeat risk factor/intervention violations according to the health department's report.
For the third inspection in a row, the restaurant has struggled to keep some of their food items cold enough. In this instance, a three-gallon container of cooked beef from the previous day was at 46°F.
Other issues the health inspector noted included the person in charge was not a certified food protection manager, boxes and bags of food were stored on the floor in the alcohol storage room and containers of spices were stored open in the same room, not covered or protected.
A follow-up inspection will be done in 5-7 businesses days to ensure the violations were corrected.
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On March 5, Golden Harbor, located at 505 S. Neil Street in Champaign, received a follow up inspection.
On Jan. 31, the restaurant received a violation correction form, because the restaurant had failed to provide two consecutive pest control reports without cockroach activity. Golden Harbor was required to continue pest control and provide two consecutive reports by Feb. 14. They later requested an extension, which moved the due date back to March 3.
Two reports, dated Feb. 17 and Feb. 24, were returned, but on Feb. 24 the technician noted 'there were a lot of dead ones around the restaurant from previous treatment.'
Because Golden Harbor has not returned two consecutive reports without cockroach activity, a yellow placard has been posted. And, if they fail to return a pest control report without activity by March 19, Golden Harbor may be closed until the report is turned in.
To see other restaurant inspections in Champaign County, click here.
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