my own drum

We are what we eat. And for this following story, that truth may be more than some readers can stomach. You have been warned.

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When this Greenwich Village KFC/Taco Bell restaurant is closed, the rats rule. Passers by spotted at least a dozen of the unruly rodents through the closed storefront and promptly broke out their cell phones to call the media, the health department, and of course, and to start making their own videos. Before noon the whole world had the story. Talk about empowerment! And just look at this rat; it must be a foot long, nose to tail.

This particular KFC/Taco Bell is a franchise operation, but you may recognize the parent company, Yum Brands, Inc. That's right, the same folks who brought us e-coli from their Taco Bell chain just last year. They passed that off as bad lettuce or cheese, no real determination or source was ever located. And now the parent company is once again in a defense posture, telling us that the franchisee will clean up their act and meet the high standards demanded by Corporate dictates. It's too bad they weren't exercising that same authority prior to this event. It's easy to commit something to paper, quite another to ensure that standards are being met. It's almost easy to believe that without public awareness and outcry, Yum Brands (and thousands more like them) will not take any proactive measures regarding the public health of their business that produces quantifiable results. Yum Brands is a corporation. They don't give a rat's ass about rats. They care about dollars.

The New York Health Department is responsible for some 30,000 eateries. They grade restaurants, and a failing grade is a score above 28 points. On Thursday, the day before footage of the rats was broadcast live around the world, an inspector went to the restaurant prompted by complaints to 311. The inspector noted a few things, and gave the restaurant a score of 9. The restaurant was allowed to remain open. The following day, after the videotaped rats made their debut, a (presumably different) health inspector found 92 points worth of violations at the KFC/Taco Bell and ordered it closed because of rodent infestation. The restaurant must pass a re-inspection before it can open again for human customers.

Health department spokesman, Geoffrey Cowley, said the health department was looking into the Thursday inspection to see whether it had been conducted properly. Based on the 92-point inspection the next day, "we have to wonder whether there was a problem with the Thursday inspection," he said.

Indeed, we do! Please get back to us about that, Mr. Cowley. While we're waiting, I located this Inspection Procedure for restaurant inspections on The New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene web site. In part, it states:

The New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene conducts inspections of all food service establishments in the city. These establishments include restaurants, retail bakeries, and "take outs." These inspections are unannounced, and are conducted by Public Health Sanitarians who are trained public health professionals with college degrees and backgrounds in the sciences. During inspections, these Sanitarians spend most of their time evaluating food workers' practices, including the manner in which they receive and store foods, how they process foods, and the temperatures at which they cook, hold, and reheat foods. If you would like to receive a copy of the full inspection report by mail, call the NYC Citizen Service Center at 311. In addition to the violations listed in this web site, the report will contain other general violations including those related to smoking. The Department will send you the most recent inspection report for up to five restaurants at no charge.

I'm still trying to locate the inspection reports on that web site. There are none listed for any KFC or Taco Bell, or under the franchise name, ADF Fifth Operating Corporation, within the Greenwich Village reports. If you can get a copy of the restaurant inspection reports for this particular KFC, drop me a note.

We never heard back from Mr Cowley, but Dr. Thomas R. Frieden, the health commissioner, made a few statements to the press. The original inspection that allowed this restaurant to remain open will be reviewed by the city’s Department of Investigation. Dr. Frieden has requested this investigation out of “an abundance of caution.” Meanwhile, the inspector is off the job, but still on the payroll until the investigation is completed. The health department is also looking into the actions of the inspectors supervisor with regards to this particular report. That inspection reported an abundance of rat droppings under the cash register, under canned-food shelves in the basement and under the hot water heater in the kitchen. It also found a large hole about 15 inches wide in the ceiling above the heater that the inspector said was conducive to pest infestation. So the inspector and her supervisor thought this was OK, and allowed this restaurant to remain open. And this is not the first time that evidence of rats has appeared at this restaurant. City records show that the restaurant had been cited for evidence of rodents in its last four inspections, going back to November 2004. So for over two years the health department has had evidence of rats in this restaurant, and has failed to take appropriate action.

Here's a statement from ADF Fifth Operating Corporation, the franchise owners of this particular restaurant.

"We want to reassure customers that our restaurants are clean and safe," the company said in a statement.

This is an isolated incident at a single restaurant at 331 6th Avenue in Greenwich Village, New York and it is totally unacceptable. The restaurant is closed and we will not allow it to be reopened until it has been sanitized and given a complete clean bill of health. We want to assure our customers that nothing is more important to us than food safety and their health.

They've known about rats in their restaurant for over two years. Someone please define Clean and Safe, in the context of the previous statements from ADF Fifth Operating Corporation. And if you any energy left, explain how they, or the parent Yum Brands, can ignore two years of health inspection reports indicating rats on the premises.

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