For the second straight time, cafeterias in New Canaan Public Schools largely aced the most recent round of unannounced inspections by the New Canaan Health Department.
Each school scored 95 or better out of a possible 100 during inspections recently conducted by sanitarian Carla DeLucia.
Saxe Middle School cafeteria.
DeLucia told NewCanaanite.com that the school cafs consistently are clean and well-cared for.
“We rarely have issues,” she said. “If there is an issue, it gets fixed immediately. They have a lot to do on a day-to-day basis, a lot of things to cover and they always do it. They really are on top of things.”
Just one school—East—was cited for what’s called a “risk factor” violation (details below).
Overall scores were:
- East—96
- South—98
- West—100
- Saxe Middle School—100
- New Canaan High School—95
Restaurants and cafeterias “fail” an inspection when cited for a major, 4-point violation, or if violation points assessed total more than 20.
None of the school cafeterias failed during inspections conducted in March and April. The last time each of them did earn a major violation/fail was:
- East School: Jan. 12, 2007 (badly dented cans found in stock room)
- South School: Jan. 23, 2012 (improperly cooled chicken soup)
- West School: June 1, 2010 (cream cheese, butter, sour cream and shredded cheese all improperly stored on top of a tray of frozen ice; overly diluted bleach sanitizer at 3-bay sink)
- Saxe Middle School: Jan. 26, 2012 (dented, 6-pound can of Furmano’s chickpeas stored in dry storage area)
- New Canaan High School: May 4, 2007 (discolored minestrone served at improper temperature)
Here are the details, noted by the sanitarian, at the most recent inspection for each school:
East
April 1—three violations total:
- Remove cup stored in container of chick peas (dry storage); provide utensil with handle to prevent bare hand contact of ready-to-eat food items & store separately.
- Milk crates used for food storage —walk-in refrigerator. Provide off-the-floor stage (shelving/drainage racks).
- Chlorine sanitizer at 3-bay low (10 ppm). Remake & test—should be 50-100 ppm (this was the “risk factor violation”)
- Temps: Soup 161 degrees; cream cheese, yogurt, parfait, fruit, tuna salad (38-42 degrees)
South
March 25—one violation:
- Handwash sink hot water temp 131 degrees, restroom 88 degrees; regulate and maintain (110-115 degrees).
West
March 7—zero violations.
Saxe
March 17—zero violations.
NCHS
April 4—four violations:
- Label—dressings/sauces, fruit prep/sauce areas; bulk ingredients.
- Crates used through walk-ins & dry storage for extra storage. Provide drainage racks or shelving.
- Hot water inadequate: (130-134) front handwash sinks, (46-88) back prep area. Will need to have a plumber come & fix immediately.
- Floor is in disrepair, gaps sealed but food & dirt are able to fit into sealed areas. Possible tripping hazard in certain areas, surface not sufficiently cleaned & sanitized. Will need replacing if further deterioration is noted.