Wilmington gyro eatery closed for 'large' rodent droppings, employees not washing hands
A downtown Wilmington restaurant that serves lamb gyros and other food was shut down Jan. 2 by the health department after an inspector saw "large" droppings from rodents in the cooking area.
Semo's Restaurant at 501 W. Ninth St. was told to cease-and-desist operations due to an imminent health hazard because of a rodent infestation. It was allowed to reopen the next day.
Large rodent droppings "that appear to be from rats" were found under a pizza oven, at the bottom shelf of the grill station, and in the dry storage area, according to a report. A strong odor was coming from a grease trap and drains at three compartment sinks, a health inspector wrote.
Division of Public Health officials visited the restaurant after receiving a complaint from a customer who said they became ill 24 hours after consuming food at Semo's.
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The restaurant told the state they did not receive any complaints about illnesses from customers and no food employees reported being sick.
In a handwritten report, an inspector said employees were observed not washing hands prior to putting on gloves to prepare foods.
A staff employee, wearing gloves, also was seen taking raw gyro meat from a reach-in refrigerator and putting it on a grill, and then used the same gloved hand to pull pita bread from a bag and put it on the grill.
Manager Mohamad El Sayad confirmed that the restaurant has reopened and that he has reeducated his employees about proper handwashing.
The inspector also wrote that utensils used to cook gyro meat were not cleaned and sanitized prior to use and food employees did not check temperatures of cooked lamb meat or other potentially hazardous foods.
Tzatziki cucumber sauce, made from mayonnaise, sour cream, dill weed, vinegar and other spice, was found on the counter at 53 degrees, which is above the safe temperature of 41 degrees.
A paint roller was found in a hand-washing sink at the entrance of the kitchen and an employee did not use soap and scrub hands for 10 to 15 seconds for hand washing.
Utensils at pizza station, a spoon to scoop rice, tongs at a warmer and spatulas at a grill were found with food accumulation and were "not clean to sight," according to the inspection report.
The Division of Public Health said before the restaurant could reopen the establishment had to be thoroughly cleaned and sanitized and a pest management company was required for treatment and assessment to block entry points.
Last summer, The News Journal learned The Division of Public Health, which oversees the safety and cleanliness of 4,000 Delaware businesses, had not been posting new health inspections online since May 2017.
Officials said they are working to modernize the system and they said an online database should be available again to the public in February.
Every week since August, The News Journal has been requesting information from the state and has learned at least 48 businesses had been forced to close temporarily in 2018 for various health code violations. Some establishments were forced to shut down immediately due to imminent health hazards and gross, unsanitary conditions.
Semo's is the first known Delaware restaurant closed in 2019.
Customers who want to anonymously report unsanitary conditions at Delaware food establishments and restaurants can call a consumer complaint hotline at 302-744-4736. Inspectors follow up on complaints.
Contact Meredith Newman at (302) 324-2386 or mnewman@delawareonline.com and on Twitter @MereNewman. Contact Patricia Talorico at (302) 324-2861 or ptalorico@delawareonline.com and on Twitter @pattytalorico.
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