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The Bridge House Restaurant on Bridgeport Avenue in Milford, Conn. scored a 94 on a surprise inspection in July, 2019, passing the city health department’s inspection. So far all the other restaurants inspected in Milford in July appear to have passed, although some of the reports may not have been filed yet, health officials said.
Jill Dion / Hearst Connecticut Medial
It may be that all of Milford’s class 3 restaurants passed inspection in July.
There are about 175 class 3 restaurants in Milford: The class 3s are the primary eating establishments, from Alfa Pizza and the Athenian Diner to Wendy’s and Woodmont Pizza. Out of the 19 class 3s that have inspection reports filed for July, all of them passed, with scores ranging from 86 to 98.
However, some of the July inspection reports may not have been filed yet, according to health officials, who said the inspectors have 30 days from the inspection to close the case.
Every restaurant and food provider in Connecticut must be inspected by a city or town inspector to ensure it complies with food safety guidelines. Inspectors visit a restaurant, caterer or food truck unannounced and tally the food violations. Restaurants that fail inspections can be fined or closed if repeated offenses are not resolved.
Connecticut uses a point system on a 100-point scale for restaurant inspections. A failing grade is a score under 80 or if a restaurant receives one or more four-point violations.
Four-point violations include improper source of food, hazardous food temperatures, unwrapped food, improperly stored toxic items, improper hand-washing facilities, unsafe water source, improper sewage disposal, unacceptable plumbing, and inadequate toilet facilities.
“If inspectors find food that can be harmful if not at the right temperature, they throw it away,” said Health Director Deepa Joseph during a recent interview. “If we find food out of temperature, we don't want them serving it. We’re going in there and anything that science has shown can be a risk for foodborne illness, we’re looking to eliminate that risk when doing an inspection.”
The Milford Health Department does not compile a report of monthly restaurant inspections, but each restaurant file may be accessed by completing a Freedom of Information request.
The Milford Mirror visited the health department last week and this week and looked through all of the class 3 restaurant files. The following had inspection reports in them, with their scores:
The Milford Mirror visited the health department last week and this week and looked through all of the class 3 restaurant files. The following had inspection reports in them, with their scores:
Bin 100 Restaurant |
88 |
Bridge House Restaurant |
94 |
Bridgeport Flyer Diner |
91 |
Buffalo Wild Wings Grill & Bar |
97 |
Captain's Catch Seafood |
92 |
China Max |
93 |
Duchess Family Restaurant |
93 |
Four Corners Rest Home |
98 |
Golden Corral |
86 |
Little Tokyo |
88 |
Mike's Italian Deli & Grill |
97 |
Milford Pizza |
86 |
Momo Japanese Cuisine |
92 |
New Town Market |
91 |
Pit Stop Cafe |
94 |
Popeyes |
87 |
Post Road News and Deli |
98 |
Tung Hing Restaurant |
87 |
Bin 100 Restaurant passed with an 88
Bridge House Restaurant passed with a 94
Bridgeport Flyer Diner passed with a 91
Buffalo Wild Wings Grill & Bar passed with a 97
Captain’s Catch Seafood passed with a 92
China Max passed with a 93
Duchess Family Restaurant passed with a 93
Four Corners Rest Home passed with a 98
Golden Corral passed with an 86
Little Tokyo passed with an 88
Mike’s Italian Deli & Grill passed with a 97
Milford Pizza passed with an 86
Momo Japanese Cuisine passed with a 92
New Town Market passed with a 91
Pit Stop Cafe passed with a 94
Popeyes passed with an 87
Post Road News and Deli passed with a 98
Tung Hing Restaurant passed with an 87
Still River Bar & Grill was inspected in July also, and while it appeared to have passed, the score had not yet been tallied.
A failed inspection in Connecticut means a food service provider will be inspected again within about two weeks. If a restaurant fails again, the owner is usually fined and required to appear before the local health inspection division, where each infraction is discussed and a plan to address the issues is established. A third violation means the business is subject to closure, at the discretion of the director of health.
“Even when we have restaurants that fail, they are really good at working with us,” said Joseph. “We all have the same goal.”
She said the inspectors aren’t just aiming to penalize restaurant owners for violations, but also to educate them on proper food handling, with the goal of making sure food is safe to eat.
Connecticut is in the process of changing its restaurant inspection system to follow the U.S. Food and Drug Administration guidelines. The new food code will change the way municipalities inspect food service providers.
The biggest change by switching to the federal FDA code is the elimination of the point system. The new system will focus on resolving violations instead of labeling food providers as either pass or fail.
The FDA code also updates safe cooking temperatures and allows for variances for special processes like sous-vide and smoking of meats that are not allowed under the current code.
In Milford, Joseph said inspectors have already been spending some of their inspection time educating local restaurant owners and staff about the new system.