Newly opened restaurant gets 5 big violations

Manager explains there was much more to violations than meets the eye

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – Bowl of Pho just opened its doors four months ago in the heart of Atlantic Beach, and state inspectors found some high-priority violations during their initial visit, but nothing serious enough to close them down.

First up, soup that was cooling in the refrigerator that wasn't cooled fast enough according to the report.  When inspectors checked the temperature it was warmer than what's considered safe.

We talked with the manager, Thuidui Tomlinson, who was quick to show us the kitchen and quick to offer an explanation.

"We close at 10 and we come in really early, so when we prepare our food the internal temperature is really down. Notice how our pots are really big? It takes a long time for it to cool down, so that was what they were saying," says Tomlinson.

There were no violations about the cleanliness of the kitchen and we could tell when we looked around it was very clean.

"We make sure that we degrease our burners and we wash everything and scrub everything every night. We bleach our counters and make sure we mop and degrease our floors as well. So I try to make sure that everything is properly cleaned and ready to open," says Tomlinson.

But there was another violation that could lead to contamination.  Inspectors wrote they found raw food stored behind fresh food. They had to rearrange their food preparatory table. Tomlinson said since this was their first inspection the goal is just to keep getting better and safer for their customers.

"With our new restaurant and our first time in this area, we are trying to get through all the proper venues to have people guide us in the right direction, so that we can prosper," says Tomlinson.

Bowl of Pho will be re-checked within the next 60 days.  Tomlinson invited us back to see how they do this next time.


About the Author:

Anchor on The Morning Show team and reporter specializing on health issues.