Baluchi's Shuttered by DOH for Second Time in Two Years

Baluchi's, the Indian restaurant on Fifth Avenue between Second and Third Streets, was shuttered last week by the Department of Health, for the second time in two years.

Last year, the restaurant racked up a whopping 72 violation points after an inspection on June 8th, and this time 49 points forced it to shut down. Here sre all the grimy details:

Sanitary Violations
1) Hot food item not held at or above 140º F.
2) Hot food item that has been cooked and refrigerated is being held for service without first being reheated to 165º F or above within 2 hours.
3) Cold food item held above 41º F (smoked fish and reduced oxygen packaged foods above 38 ºF) except during necessary preparation.
4) Raw, cooked or prepared food is adulterated, contaminated, cross-contaminated, or not discarded in accordance with HACCP plan.
5) Live roaches present in facility's food and/or non-food areas.
6) Tobacco use, eating, or drinking from open container in food preparation, food storage or dishwashing area observed.
7) Food contact surface not properly washed, rinsed and sanitized after each use and following any activity when contamination may have occurred.
8) Facility not vermin proof. Harborage or conditions conducive to attracting vermin to the premises and/or allowing vermin to exist.
9) Non-food contact surface improperly constructed. Unacceptable material used. Non-food contact surface or equipment improperly maintained and/or not properly sealed, raised, spaced or movable to allow accessibility for cleaning on all sides, above and underneath the unit.

Juventino Shut Down by DOH

The Department of Health has really been on a roll these past couple months.

Coco Roco, Konditori, Baluchi's, Five Guys, and more have been a victim of their ever-widening hammer in recent weeks, and a couple days ago it fell on Juventino (formerly Get Fresh), the popular restaurant and brunch spot on Fifth Avenue between Fourth and Fifth Streets.

The spacious, pricey restaurant, best known for its farm-to-table fare inspired by the home cooking of chef/owner Juventino Avila's mother, is a big hit with the daytime crowd, and every menu item is selected with an eye on seasonality and freshness. Judging by the DOH report it doesn't appear as if cleanliness was the issue here; apparently there just wasn't enough done to ensure that food was cooked to, and held at, safe temperatures. 

Many argue that the city's health inspectors have gotten out of control, and are in it more for the money than to actually keep restaurants clean. City Council Speaker Christine Quinn agrees, and will soon be proposing legislation that would scale back the overzealous inspections and outrageous fines. 

UPDATE: I just heard from Juventino, who informed me that the restaurant is back open. "We have held an A grade for some time now," he said, "It came as a surprise to receive an unfavorable grade– especially since all 4 (yes, 4) inspectors commented on how clean our restaurant was kept."

As a way to thank the community for their support, they will be offering all white wine for half price until Sunday evening. 

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Coco Roco Shuttered by DOH

The latest victim of the Department of Health's hammer is Coco Roco, the Peruvian restaurant on Fifth Avenue between Sixth and Seventh Streets. 

Many thanks to a tipster for forwarding along the above photo of the imfamous yellow sign that was pasted to the doorway after the restaurant, best known for its chicken, was shut down yesterday. Their grading has yet to be updated on the DOH website, so the grimy details will have to remain under wraps for now.

For those desperate for your Coco Roco fix, their Smith Street location (between Bergen and Dean) remains open. 

Five Guys on Seventh Shuttered by DOH

The Department of Health's hammer fell once again yesterday, on one of the neighborhood's most popular chain restaurants. Five Guys, on Seventh Avenue between Sixth and Seventh Streets, got the infamous yellow sticker after apparently failing a health inspection, and has been shut down. 

While this will most likely be a temporary closure (chains seem to be better equipped than the little guys at getting their act together in these situations), this does appear to be the first failed inspection for Five Guys citywide. Every outpost of the chain currently has an "A" grading (there are 25 in the city), and this one's most recent inspection only earned it six points. The closure isn't reflected on the DOH's website yet for some reason, but maybe it takes a couple days to kick in. 

Many thanks to a tipster for sending in the photo above. 

El Viejo Yayo Shuttered by DOH

El Viejo Yayo, the sprawling, 42 year-old Latin restaurant on Fifth Avenue between Bergen and Dean Streets, was shuttered by the Department of Health on Saturday, after failing an inspection in which they racked up 84 points. 

The restaurant, which started as a simple lunch counter but expanded over the years to encompass three storefronts (and a second location on Ninth Street), is a local favorite for parties and other large gatherings, and its bar area is known to get pretty hopping. Below are all the major violations; something tells me that they'll rebound from this pretty quickly. 

Violation points: 84

Sanitary Violations
1) Hot food item not held at or above 140º F.
2) Cold food item held above 41º F (smoked fish and reduced oxygen packaged foods above 38 ºF) except during necessary preparation.
3) Raw, cooked or prepared food is adulterated, contaminated, cross-contaminated, or not discarded in accordance with HACCP plan.
4) Live roaches present in facility's food and/or non-food areas.
5) Food not protected from potential source of contamination during storage, preparation, transportation, display or service.
6) Food contact surface not properly washed, rinsed and sanitized after each use and following any activity when contamination may have occurred.
7) Wiping cloths soiled or not stored in sanitizing solution.