Downtown restaurant ordered to close after failed health inspection
Bart Bedsole
This week’s Restaurant Roundup highlights two downtown-area restaurants with very different health inspection scores.
One of them had to be shut down and has yet to reopen.
Pho Sister, at the intersection of Nevada and Las Vegas, failed a previous health inspection back in March, but this time around, it was ordered to close until certain violations are addressed.
The findings on Sept. 5 include:
-There was no certified food protection manager on duty
-A food handler drank from a personal water bottle, then put on gloves without washing their hands, and also touched raw beef, then raw shrimp without first changing gloves
-Raw shrimp was only heated to 112 degrees, not at least 145 degrees as required
-Noodles and cooked meats were left out at room temperature to cool, instead of being placed in the cooler
When KRDO13 visited Pho Sister on Monday, the door and gate were locked, with signs on the door that read, “Under new ownership” and “Will be open in October or sooner.”
KRDO13 also tried to reach the owner by phone, but no one responded.
Until an inspector returns to confirm that certain violations are addressed, Pho Sister will not be allowed to reopen.
OTHER FAILING SCORES
Zocalo – 418 S Tejon (visited in a previous Restaurant Roundup)
Staybridge Suites – 7130 Commerce Center Dr
Pikes Poke Bowl – 9290 Highland Rdg Hts (third failure in a row)
HIGH SCORES
Mod Pizza – 5925 Dublin Blvd
The Springs Bagel Company – 4621 Austin Bluffs Pkwy
On The Border – 2190 Southgate Rd
Colorado Mountain Brewery – 600 S. 21st
Subway – 6616 Dalby Dr
Subway – 2499 S Academy Blvd
Domino’s Pizza – 3025 Jet Wing Dr
Sonic – 2302 S Academy
Pizza Hut – 2840 S Academy
The Warehouse Restaurant – 25 W Cimarron St
Located at Cimarron and Sahwatch, just across from Wiedner Field in downtown Colorado Springs, The Warehouse Restaurant serves Southwestern American food, with an emphasis on game meats.
“Things that you’re not going to find in every other restaurant. We serve a lot of bison, elk, wild boar, and we have nilgai antelope coming onto the menu in about a month,” says owner and chef James Africano.
The restaurant’s signature dish is a North American elk strip loin, served with bacon jam and sweet potato hash.
Africano ran the kitchen at the restaurant for about 10 years before moving to New Mexico, then returned in 2015 when the opportunity came up to purchase it, and has operated it ever since.
He holds his kitchen to very high standards and says if you’re not committed to doing it the right way, you’re probably not going to last.
“If you’re going to run a quality establishment and charge the money that we charge for people to come in here and eat, I need you to jump on board and be a part of the team all the way, and that includes health and safety,” he says.
While the restaurant is the main attraction, not all of the art takes place in the kitchen.
On nearly every wall in the dining area, as well as the attached open space for larger events, there are paintings and photos created almost entirely by local artists, all of which are available for purchase.
Africano considers it an upscale dining experience, but hopes to create an environment where guests feel like they’re in their own living room.
He recommends making a reservation on Fridays and Saturdays, but says guests can usually get a table on other nights of the week.
Keep an eye out for the KRDO13 Restaurant Roundup awards at your favorite restaurant to know that the kitchen inside is clean.
Click here for a look at all the most recent health inspection scores.