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Burke County Health Dept
Public Health Inspections
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Premises Information

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NameATLANTIC COUNTRY BUFFET
AddressA114 MORGANTON HEIGHTS BLVD
 
City/State/ZIP
MORGANTON NC 28655
Premise Type1 - Restaurant
CountyBurke
Inspection Date 4/23/2026
Final Score @ Grade
90 A
General Comments

Violations

 
CDI=Corrected During Inspection  R=Repeat Violation  VR=Verification Required 
Violation Item Demerits Violation Description CDIRVRComments
1 1 PIC Present, demonstrates knowledge, & performs duties Yes No No 2-101.11 - Assignment: PIC shall be present during all hours of operation. Pf Observed no PIC present at the beginning of the inspection. CDI-PIC arrived towards the end of the inspection 2-103.11 - Person In Charge: PIC shall ensure rules in the code for food safety and handling are met. Pf Observed PIC duties not being met as required, such as sanitizing of utensils, foods protected from adulteration, proper cold and hot holding, and maintaining proper TPHC procedures. CDI- by education with PIC
2 1 Certified Food Protection Manager No Yes No 2-102.12(A) Certified Food Protection Manager (C) Person-in-charge (PIC) during the inspection could not provide proof of Food Safety Manager certification through an accredited program. A person with a food protection manager certification shall be onsite during all operating hours. CDI-a certified food protection manager arrived towards the end of the inspection
6 0 Proper eating, tasting, drinking or tobacco use Yes No No 2-401.11 - Eating, Drinking, or Using Tobacco: Employees shall eat, drink, or use any form of tobacco only in designated area to prevent cross contamination. Observed an employee beverage on the sushi prep table, on the cookline handsink, and the prep cooler on the cookline. CDI-all drinks were relocated
10 0 Handwashing sinks supplied & accessible Yes No No 5-205.11 - Using a Handwashing Sink: Maintain access to handsinks. Handsinks may only be used for handwashing. Pf Observed dishes in the sushi handwash sink, ice and lemons in the wait station handsink, and a drink on the cookline handsink. CDI- All items were relocated.
13 0 Food in good condition, safe & unadulterated Yes No No 3-101.11 - Safe, Unadulterated, and Honestly Presented: Food shall be safe for consumption, unadulterated and honestly presented. P Observed discoloration marks on ribs in the walk in cooler and a single use glove in raw chicken in the right prep cooler. CDI-ribs were voluntarily discarded and the glove was removed from the chicken
15 1.50 Food separated & protected Yes Yes No 3-302.11 - Packaged and Unpackaged Food - Separation, Packaging, and Segregation: Food shall be protected from cross contamination by separation during storage, preparation, holding, and display. P Observed raw shell eggs above sauces in the walk in cooler, raw chicken beside RTE foods in the walk in, raw fish beside RTE foods in the 2 door cooler, fried chicken and shrimp uncovered in the 2 door cooler, raw shell eggs on top of RTE foods in both prep coolers, wontons uncovered in the 2 door RIF, wontons for soup uncovered in the left prep cooler, uncovered raw shrimp beside lettuce and onions in the 2 door sushi cooler, raw chorizo over cooked chicken and beef in the 2 door sushi cooler. CDI-by rearranging and covering
16 3 Food-contact surfaces: cleaned & sanitized Yes Yes No 4-602.11 - Equipment Food-Contact Surfaces and Utensils: Clean the equipment and utensils used with TCS foods as required to avoid contamination. P Observed can opener blade soiled. Must be cleaned and sanitized before each use or at least once every 4 hours. CDI-by washing and sanitizing. 4-501.114 - Manual and Mechanical Warewashing Equipment, Chemical Sanitization - Temperature, pH, Concentration, and Hardness: Maintain sanitizer at correct concentrations when being used to sanitize. P Observed dishmachine sanitizer at 0ppm. Sanitizer was empty. Bucket was switched, machine was primed, and concentration was still at 0ppm. CDI-dishes will be sanitized in the 3 compartment sink until repaired. A follow up visit will be made to ensue long term compliance 4-703.11(A-C) Hot Water and Chemical-Methods (P) Observed an employee wash and rinse pans without sanitizing. After being cleaned, equipment food contact surfaces and utensils shall be sanitized before use and after cleaning. CDI-by sanitizing pans
21 0 Proper hot holding temperatures Yes No No 3-501.16 - Potentially Hazardous Food (Time/Temperature Control for Safety Food), Hot and Cold Holding: Maintain TCS foods in hot holding at 135F or above. P Observed cooked chcken and vegetables above wok station holding at 120F. CDI,chicken and vegetables were reheated to 165F. Observed on the hot hold buffet 1, chicken and onions at 98F, cooked mushrooms at 106, sandwiches at 126F, and dumplings at 94F, and on the buffet 2, fries at 102F. CDI-all items were voluntarily discarded
22 0 Proper cold holding temperatures No Yes No 3-501.16 - Potentially Hazardous Food (Time/Temperature Control for Safety Food), Hot and Cold Holding: Maintain TCS foods in cold holding at 41F or less. P Observed pickled ginger at 72F on shelving (label states to refrigerate after opening), in the left prep cooler, peas and carrots at 58F, sliced cabbage at 62F, and wontons at 53F, air temperature in the unit was 54F, on the buffet cold bar, lettuce at 60, in the sushi cold bar, raw beef at 51, in the sushi cooler, chopped steak and chicken at 45F, lettuce at 44F. CDI-all items were voluntarily discarded A follow up visit will be made to ensure long term compliance
23 0 Proper date marking & disposition Yes Yes No 3-501.17 - Ready-to-Eat, Potentially Hazardous Food (Time/Temperature Control for Safety Food), Date Marking: Date mark all TCS foods that are ready-to-eat once opened or prepared and held more than 24hrs. Pf Observed no dates on baked seafood salad, beef, tamales, and ribs in the walk in, corn, noodles, and cut cabbage in the right 2 door cooler, fried chicken and shrimp in the left 2 door cooler, wontons in the left prep cooler, crab sticks in the sushi make table. CDI-foods in the walk in were voluntarily discarded. All other items were properly dated
24 3 Time as a Public Health Control; procedures & records Yes Yes No 3-501.19 - Time As A Public Health Control: The food shall be identified to indicate the time that is 4 hours from the point in time it is removed from temperature control. Pf Upon arrival, observed sushi rice without a time stamp. CDI-time was placed on the item 3-501.19 - Time As A Public Health Control: The food is unmarked in containers or marked to exceed a 4 hour limit shall be discarded. P Observed sushi rolls (Cali roll, salmon roll, tuna crab roll, spicy crab roll, spicy crab mayo roll, salmon roll, tuna roll, and masago crab roll) exceeding their 4 hour limit. CDI-all rolls were voluntarily discarded
37 0 Food properly labeled: original container No No Yes 3-302.12 - Food Storage Containers, Identified with Common Name of Food: Label all working containers of food (oils, spices, salts) except food that is easy to identify such as dry pasta. Observed container of spices and breading on prep tables without labels. Label as necessary.
38 0 Insects & rodents not present; no unauthorized animals No No No 6-501.111 - Controlling Pests: Keep the premises free of insects, rodents, and other pests. Observed several flies in the kitchen during the inspection. Contact pest control.
39 0 Contamination prevented during food preparation, storage & display No No No 3-303.12 - Storage or Display of Food in Contact with Water or Ice: Unpackaged food may not be stored in direct contact with undrained ice. Observed shrimp in undrained ice on the cold buffet line. Ensure that ice is draining.
44 0.50 Utensils, equipment & linens: properly stored, dried & handled No Yes No 4-903.11(B)(1) Equipment, Utensils, Linens, and Single-Service and Single-Use Articles (C) Equipment and Utensils, Air-Drying Required (C) Observed utensils being wet nested after cleaning and sanitizing. Clean equipment and utensils shall be stored in a self-draining position that allows air drying.
47 0 Equipment, food & non-food contact surfaces approved, cleanable, properly designed, constructed & used No Yes No 4-501.12 - Cutting Surfaces: Cutting blocks and boards that are subject to scratching and scoring shall be resurfaced if they can no longer be effectively cleaned and sanitized or discarded. Observed white cutting boards heavily scratched. Resurface or replace as necessary. 4-202.16 - Nonfood-Contact Surfaces: Nonfood-contact surfaces shall be free of unnecessary ledges, projections, and crevices, and designed and constructed to allow easy cleaning and to facilitate maintenance. Observed plastic wrap being used as a barrier between the soiled utensil rack and the clean dish shelf. Have replaced with a smooth, easily cleanable, nonabsrobant material. EHS suggests plexi-glass.
48 0 Warewashing facilities: installed, maintained & used; test strips Yes Yes No 4-302.14 - Sanitizing Solutions, Testing Devices: A test kit or other device that accurately measures the concentration in mg/L (or ppm) of sanitizing solutions shall be provided. Establishment was unable to provide chlorine test strips. CDI-EHS provided a few test strips until purchased. A follow-up visit will be made to ensure long term compliance.