By Sara Beth Williams–
Health inspectors from Sacramento County recently identified multiple violations at a local restaurant in Citrus Heights, leading to the issuance of a yellow placard.
Publicly available inspection records show the restaurant, Hibachi Buffet Sushi & Grill, successfully passed a re-inspection 24 hours later and received a green placard.
According to a July 5 report in the Sacramento Bee, county health inspectors initially found 10 violations in total on June 26, including “no soap at handwashing stations” and multiple pounds of food “unfit for human consumption.” The restaurant was given a yellow placard, which signals that “two or more major violations” have occurred, according to the Sacramento County Food Inspection Guide.
Violations are typically corrected or mitigated during the inspection process, and a follow-up inspection takes place within 24 to 72 hours to ensure all violations remain corrected.
A red placard signals “imminent danger to public health and safety” and suspends the health permit until violations are corrected. A green placard signals that a restaurant has passed the inspection.
According to the June 26 health inspection report, inspectors found multiple foods “not fit for human consumption” or in violation of other health codes, including five pounds of shrimp, three pounds of chicken on skewers, three pounds of ribs, two pounds of beef pie, two pounds of noodles, and one pound of bean sprouts.
The amount of time food was left on the buffet line was not tracked, according to the report. Health inspectors require that food on a buffet line “shall be served or discarded within the four-hour time limit,” and written procedures for prepared, cooked, or refrigerated food before time must be maintained and made available to enforcement agencies upon request.
The county conducts an estimated 14,000 inspections annually and 97 percent of all restaurants pass their inspections, spokesman Ken Casparis previously told The Sacramento Bee, which conducts reports of restaurant inspections in a series called “Reality Check.” Only one percent of inspections result in a closure. Most restaurants reopen within 72 hours after re-inspection.
Hibachi Buffet currently has a 4.3-star rating on Google with 433 ratings but a 3.9-star rating on Yelp with 39 reviews. The Buffet is located at 5623 Sunrise Blvd.
