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Avery County Health Dept
Public Health Inspections
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Premises Information

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NameLOWES 158 MEAT DEPT
Address4000 NC RT 105
 
City/State/ZIP
BANNER ELK NC 28604
Premise Type30 - Meat Market
CountyAvery
Inspection Date 3/9/2026
Final Score @ Grade
97 A
General CommentsOverall neat and clean kitchen! Each food employee wore hair restraints appropriately. Interns Ellen Craig and Zach Holtsclaw observed as part of FLI authorization training.

Violations

 
CDI=Corrected During Inspection  R=Repeat Violation  VR=Verification Required 
Violation Item Demerits Violation Description CDIRVRComments
10 0 Handwashing sinks supplied & accessible Yes No No 6-301.11 Handwashing Cleanser, Availability (Pf) Each HANDWASHING SINK or group of 2 adjacent HANDWASHING SINKS shall be provided with a supply of hand cleaning liquid, powder, or bar soap. One of the handsinks had a broken soap dispenser with no soap. A food employee fixed it and supplied it with soap upon request. CDI. Points not accessed since you could easily wash hands at the other sink. However, we expect ALL handsinks to be supplied with soap at all times.
16 0 Food-contact surfaces: cleaned & sanitized Yes No No 4-601.11 (A) Equipment, Food-Contact Surfaces, Nonfood Contact Surfaces, and Utensils (Pf) Food contact surfaces shall be clean to sight and touch. Observed metal prep containers stacked as clean under a prep table with food debris on them and grease residues on the rim. There is also debris in the ice machine. All the dishes were taken to be rewashed. CDI. Points not accessed for this item since the root of the issue was mostly proper dish storage.
20 0 Proper cooling time & temperatures Yes No No 3-501.14 Cooling (P) (A) Cooked TIME/TEMPERATURE CONTROL FOR SAFETY FOOD shall be cooled:(1) Within 2 hours from 57C (135F) to 21C (70F); P and(2) Within a total of 6 hours from 57C (135F) to 5C (41F) or less. Brisket and chicken bites did not cool to 41F in the display case and were volunarily discarded CDI.
21 1.50 Proper hot holding temperatures Yes No No 3-501.16 (A) (1) Time / Temperature Control for Safety Food, Hot and Cold Holding (P) TCS foods shall be hot held at 135F or above. Observed cooked chicken, pork, and burgers store on a hot holding bar below 135. All items taken to be reheated. CDI. Most items which did not hot hold properly were sitting at the edge of the hot holding bar, further away from the heat lamps. Please keep the items away from the edges of the unit for proper hot holding.
33 0.50 Proper cooling methods used; adequate equipment for temperature control Yes No No 3-501.15 Cooling Methods (Pf) (B) When placed in cooling or cold holding EQUIPMENT, FOOD containers in which FOOD is being cooled shall be: (2) Loosely covered, or uncovered if protected from overhead contamination. Observed various cooked chicken and barbeque items cooling on rack in the walk-in cooler with a plastic wrap over them. EHS educated staff to cool TCS items uncovered or loosely covered. A manager removed to wrap to let the items cool properly upon request. There was some brisket, cooked ribs, and chicken bites above 41F in a display case which PIC said cooled overnight while covered which were voluntarily discarded. CDI. Improper cooling is a leading cause of foodborne illness.
44 0.50 Utensils, equipment & linens: properly stored, dried & handled No No No 4-903.11 (A), (B), and (D) Equipment, Utensils, Linens and Single-Service and Single-Use Articles Storing (C) (A) Except as specified in (D) of this section, cleaned EQUIPMENT and UTENSILS, laundered LINENS, and SINGLE-SERVICE and SINGLEUSE ARTICLES shall be stored: (2) Where they are not exposed to splash, dust, or other contamination. Observed cleaned dishes stored underneath a prep table where food debris fell onto them. Points were assessed for this item since this is why so many of the cleaned dishes were soiled. 4-901.11 Equipment and Utensils, Air-Drying Required (C) After cleaning and SANITIZING, EQUIPMENT and UTENSILS: (A) Shall be air-dried or used after adequate draining. Observed wet stacking of cleaned dishes. Wet stacking is discouraged since it can promote microbial growth on cleaned dishes.
49 0.50 Non-food contact surfaces clean Yes No No 4-601.11 (B) and (C) Equipment, Food-Contact Surfaces, Nonfood Contact Surfaces, and Utensils (C) (C) NonFOOD-CONTACT SURFACES of EQUIPMENT shall be kept free of an accumulation of dust, dirt, FOOD residue, and other debris. Observed food debris on the shelf underneath the prep table where dishes are stored. This poses another risk for cleaned dish contamination at this establishment and should be address to abate dish cleanliness problems.
54 0 Garbage & refuse properly disposed; facilities maintained No No No 5-501.115 Maintaining Refuse Areas and Enclosures (C)A storage area and enclosure for REFUSE, recyclables, or returnables shall be maintained free of unnecessary items, as specified under § 6-501.114, and clean. Observed minor trash and leaf accumulation around the outdoor dumpster. Do not let this further accumulate or else rodents and insects will be attracted to the premises.