Premises Information


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Name

MEZEH MEDITERRANEAN GRILL STRAWBERRY HILL

Address

4920 OLD SARDIS RD

STE D3

City/State/ZIP

CHARLOTTE

28211

Premise Type

1 - Restaurant

County

Mecklenburg

Inspection Date

5/18/2026

Final Score @ Grade

General Comments

Facility has replaced cold holding units on line since last inspection with the intention that facility may maintain food using temperature instead of time. However some items including black lentils, hummus, spicy hummus were observed holding above 41F. Observed facility using 6 hour TPHC procedures for all cold items on line. Facility should continue to use TPHC at this time.

Violations

CDI=Corrected During Inspection

R=Repeat Violation

VR=Verification Required

Violation Item	Demerits	Violation Description	CDI	R	VR	Comments
6	0.50	Proper eating, tasting, drinking or tobacco use	Yes	No	No	2-401.11 (A). Employee beverages must be stored in a designated area where contamination of food, clean equipment, utensils, linens, and single-use articles cannot occur. Observed employee beverage in shelf at grill station above single service items and another employee beverage stored directly on cutting board that was being used to prepare food. CDI- beverages relocated.
8	2	Hands clean & properly washed	Yes	No	No	2-301.14 Wash hands before engaging in food preparation including working with exposed food, clean equipment and utensils, and unwrapped single service and single use articles. -P. Observed employee report to work for shift and come directly into kitchen and put on gloves to begin food prep without first washing hands. CDI- employee directed to discard gloves, wash hands and put on clean gloves. 2-301.12 (A),(B) Wash hands for at least 20 seconds. Follow the cleaning procedure to adequately wash your hands. Use warm water, soap, scrub 10 to 15 seconds, rinse, and immediately follow the cleaning procedure with thorough hand drying method (ex. Disposable Paper Towel). -P Observed employee use bare hand to turn off faucet to then continue food prep. CDI- employee rewashed hands properly.
15	1.50	Food separated & protected	Yes	No	No	3-304.15(A) Discard gloves after a task is complete or any time they are damaged or soiled. -P. Observed employee wearing gloves at grill station wipe cutting boards and knives with sanitizer towels and then go back to food preparation without changing gloves or washing hands. CDI- employee discarded gloves, washed hands and put on clean gloves.
21	1.50	Proper hot holding temperatures	Yes	Yes	No	3-501.16(A)(1) Maintain TCS foods in hot holding at 135F or above. -P Observed falafel in steam well on line at 130F. CDI- falafel reheated to above 165F and placed back on line. Lid added to help maintain temperature. Points reduced due to this was the only item below 135F. For more information, please visit: www.mecknc.gov/foodsafety or view our training videos at the following weblinks: What are TCS Foods https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q0iLZb7v0UM and Safe Food Temperatures https://youtu.be/tXP09IK-1TQ .
23	1.50	Proper date marking & disposition	Yes	No	No	3-501.17 (C)TCS food combined with additional ingredients or portions of other TCS food shall retain the date marking on the earliest/first prepared TCS food ingredient. -Pf. Observed Taziki sauce, Turkish salad and seasonal vegetables in back up prep unit labeled with today’s today. However items had been portioned today from larger batches from the walk in cooler that were made on previous dates. CDI- date labels corrected. For more information, please visit: www.mecknc.gov/foodsafety or view our training videos at the following weblinks: What are TCS Foods https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q0iLZb7v0UM and Date Marking Food Safely https://youtu.be/BOPsSNUajYs .
24	1.50	Time as a Public Health Control; procedures & records	Yes	Yes	No	3-501.19 (C ) (1) Follow written procedures for cold foods held using Time as a Public Health Control (TPHC) for 6 hours, food shall begin at 41F, and may not exceed 70F within the 6 hour time period. -P. Observed facility following 6 hour TPHC procedures however line was set up upon arrival but there were several items (hummus, spicy hummus, black lentils and seasonal vegetables) that were in place on line but start temperature was not recorded. PIC stated that she was waiting for foods to cool to 41F first. CDI- educated PIC that food must be 41F prior to bringing to line. Temps of product recorded and added to log. Points decreased due to improvement with overall procedures.
28	1	Toxic substances properly identified stored & used	Yes	Yes	No	7-102.11 Label working containers of toxic materials such as cleaners and sanitizers.-Pf. Observed two spray bottles of chemicals unlabeled. CDI- window cleaner labeled and unknown chemical was discarded. 7-201.11 Store toxic materials to avoid contamination of food, equipment, utensils, linens, and single-service/use items. -P. Observed bottle of grill cleaner stored on shelf above bags of rice near grill station.
33	0	Proper cooling methods used; adequate equipment for temperature control	Yes	No	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 Observed facility using reach in freezer for cooling of products however, hummus made today was in a 5 gallon covered container in walk in cooler that was not cooling quickly enough to meet parameters. CDI- hummus divided into 2 containers to facilitate cooling. For more information, please visit: https://health.mecknc.gov/envhealth/food-and-facilities-sanitation or view our training videos at the following weblinks: What are TCS Foods https://youtu.be/bRvqAETDjQU and Cooling Food Safely https://youtu.be/P6x8b1ZVOxU .
40	0	Personal cleanliness	No	No	No	2-303.11 Remove jewelry on hands and arms while preparing food. A plain ring, such as a wedding band, is allowed. Observed employee wearing multiple bracelets on both arms while cooking and slicing chicken. 2-402.11 Use head coverings, beard guards and clothing to restrain body hair from contacting exposed food, equipment, and utensils. Observed same employee not wearing a proper hair restraint.
44	0.50	Utensils, equipment & linens: properly stored, dried & handled	No	Yes	No	4-903.11(B)(1) Clean equipment and utensils shall be stored in a self-draining position that allows for air drying. Observed stack of metal pans on upper shelf wet stacked. However, most pans were stacked to allow for proper air drying.
56	0	Meets ventilation & lighting requirements; designated areas used	No	No	No	6-305.11/6-501.110 Designate and use an area for the orderly storage of employees' clothing and possessions. Observed employee phone stored on metal strip tucked behind and touching clean knives on wall at back prep area.