Premises Information


	Return to Inspections

Name

LAS MERAS TORTAS

Address

5661 FARM POND LN

City/State/ZIP

CHARLOTTE

28212

Premise Type

1 - Restaurant

County

Mecklenburg

Inspection Date

9/9/2021

Final Score @ Grade

73.50

General Comments

Violations

CDI=Corrected During Inspection

R=Repeat Violation

VR=Verification Required

Violation Item	Demerits	Violation Description	CDI	R	VR	Comments
1	2	PIC present, Demonstration - Certification by accredited program, and performs duties	No	Yes	No	2-103.11(A-L) PIC shall ensure rules in the code for food safety and handling are met. Overall lack of managerial control in kitchen observed concerning risk violations including, but not limited to date marking, cooling, hot holding, sanitizing, hand washing, glove usage, etc. Repeat violation.
4	1	Proper eating, tasting, drinking, or tobacco use	No	Yes	No	2-401.11 Eating, Drinking, or Using Tobacco - C Food employee observed actively eating while carrying open pan of food to cooler. Education provided to employee about designated areas for eating and drinking. 2-401.11 Cover and store employee drinks to prevent contamination of food or utensils. Employee coffee observed on prep table where active food prep was occurring. Repeat violation.
6	4	Hands clean and properly washed	Yes	Yes	No	2-301.14 Wash hands after handling soiled equipment, donning gloves, between glove uses, handling utensils and before food preparation, handling clean equipment and utensils and unwrapped single-use/single-service articles. -P Employees observed going out back door of kitchen and returning to food prep, handling soiled wet wiping cloths, handling soiled dishes, handling uncooked meat before returning to handling other food, donning gloves when instructed, and other activities that contaminate hands without washing hands in between. Education provided and employees rewashed hands. Repeat violation.
8	0	Handwashing sinks, supplied and accessible	No	No	No	5-205.11 Maintain access to handsinks. Handsinks may only be used for handwashing.-Pf Large trash can obscured wedged in between prep sink and blocking handsink. CDI. Moved.
13	1.50	Food separated and protected	Yes	No	No	3-302.11(A) Separate the different types of raw animal foods. -P Raw chicken observed above raw steak in walk-in cooler and freezer. CDI. Rearranged. 3-304.15(A) Discard gloves after a task is complete or any time they are damaged or soiled. -P Multiple employees observed using single use gloves for multiple tasks multiple times. Activities include handling soiled equipment then returning to food prep, going outside with gloves on and returning to food prep, handling raw meat then returning to handling RTE food, wiping down soiled prep counters then handling clean utensils, washing soiled dishes, then returning to food prep, etc. CDI. Employees changed gloves and washed hands.
14	1.50	Food-contact surfaces: cleaned and sanitized	Yes	No	No	4-602.11 Clean the equipment and utensils used with TCS foods as required to avoid contamination. -P Food employee observed cutting raw beef tripe in prep sinks and washing them with detergent, but not sanitizing in between uses. CDI. Employees sanitized with chlorine sanitizer.
18	3	Proper cooling time and temperatures	Yes	Yes	No	3-501.14(A) Quickly cool cooked foods within 2 hours from 135F to 70F; and within a total of 6 hours from 135F to 41F. -P Black beans and refried beans reported prepared and placed in cooler overnight found tightly wrapped above 41F. PIC reported food had not left cooler since night prior. CDI. Food items discarded. Repeat violation. Cooling has vastly improved overall, but minor improvement needed.
19	1.50	Proper hot holding temperatures	Yes	No	No	3-501.16(A)(1) Maintain TCS foods in hot holding at 135F or above. -P Beef, bowl of rice, and refried beans observed hot holding below 135F. CDI. Rice discarded and other two items placed on grill to reheat.
20	3	Proper cold holding temperatures	Yes	Yes	No	3-501.16(A)(2) Maintain TCS foods in cold holding at 41F or less. -P Cut lettuce and shredded cheese observed overstacked cold holding in flip top unit. Repeat violation.
21	3	Proper date marking and disposition	Yes	Yes	No	3-501.18 Discard the food requiring date labels once time/temperature window has expired, if it is not been labeled, or if the label is incorrect. -P Queso fresco observed with expired date marking, chicharron and two other food items observed missing date marking. CDI. Items discarded. Repeat violation.
31	1	Proper cooling methods used; adequate equipment for temperature control	Yes	Yes	No	3-501.15 Quickly cool foods. Use methods such as open/vented shallow pans, large ice baths and active stirring. Cold air must flow around product to remove the heat. -Pf Black beans and refried beans observed cooling overnight in tightly wrapped containers found above 41F. Repeat violation.
33	0.50	Approved thawing methods used	No	Yes	No	3-501.13 Use approved thawing methods. Beef tripe (stomach lining) observed thawing in standing water in prep sink temped at 81 degrees F. Part of the tripe was frozen and the other part 47F. Repeat violation.
37	2	Contamination prevented during food preparation, storage and display	No	Yes	No	3-305.11 Store food in a clean, dry location, not exposed to contamination. Keep at least 6 inches above the floor. Cutting board recently in use observed on top of trash can upon entry. Repeat violation.
38	0.50	Personal cleanliness	No	Yes	No	2-402.11 Use head coverings, beard guards and clothing to restrain body hair from contacting exposed food, equipment, and utensils. Multiple food employees observed handling food without hair restraints. Repeat violation.
39	0	Wiping cloths: properly used and stored	No	No	No	3-304.14(B) Hold in-use wiping cloths in sanitizer between uses. Multiple wet wiping cloths observed on prep counters upon arrival of inspection.
42	1	Utensils, equipment and linens: properly stored, dried and handled	No	Yes	No	4-901.11(A) Air dry equipment and utensils after cleaning and sanitizing. Multiple stacks of metal pans and bus pans observed stacked wet. Repeat violation.
52	0.50	Garbage and refuse properly disposed; facilities maintained	No	Yes	No	5-501.113(B) Keep dumpster, outside waste containers covered with tight-fitting lids or doors. Observed lid open on dumpster. Repeat violation.
54	0.50	Meets ventilation and lighting requirements; designated areas used	No	Yes	No	6-305.11/6-501.110 Designate and use an area for the orderly storage of employees' clothing and possessions. Observed employee plugging up phone with charger on top of clean service plates on shelving. Repeat violation.