Health Department Roundup
Not much to see on the city's health inspection report page this week. Apparently, inspectors took the weekend off - there are no reports for August 13 or 14. Good for them, good for restaurant owners whose blood pressure probably spikes when it's inspection time, bad for us. It's like inspectors don't even consider our feelings at all. 
Super Pollos #2 was using water that wasn't what?!
The inspection of La Catrachita (mobile, listed at 6233 Gulfton) shows how tricky it can be to operate a food truck. True, the operator should have had a Food Service Manager's Certification. But the operator was also cited and temporarily closed for not proving there were "adequate" restrooms within 300 feet of the unit, and for providing a "dining area" for patrons. There's probably a reason mobile vendors aren't supposed to put out chairs and tables for their customers, but it doesn't seem to be a particularly malicious violation. And if you judge by the sidewalks downtown, pretty much any flat surface counts as an "adequate" restroom. Who needs civilization, anyway.
Second place goes to another mobile food unit, Super Pollos #2 (listed at 6807 Lyons). The truck was cited for a couple potentially bad violations, including using water from an unapproved source and using water that wasn't "under pressure." Maybe they found a nice pond and just went to town. Also, food was not held at the proper temperature, and the operators also committed the cardinal sin of not being able to prove the unit was serviced daily at an approved commissary.
Beef and Bun (8155 Long Point), a small barbecue joint in Spring Branch, escaped citation but was written up for a few violations. Those included sanitizing water that wasn't in the proper range (180-194 degrees Fahrenheit, for all you future health inspectors out there); openings to the outside that weren't protected against pests; and most shocking of all, a lack of signage denoting which foods contain sulfites. You know, for people who have sulfite allergies but for some reason are still unaware what might trigger those. And despite the fact that it's not even a real allergy. Thanks, Big Brother.
Unfortunate Name of the Week: Cup Cake Coach (mobile, listed at 13530 Shadow Falls), congratulations on the perfect inspection last week. Now it might be time to consider a name that doesn't have such a strong association with that time-honored rhyming pejorative, "roach coach." Just saying.
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