State Inspectors Issue One C Grade And Two B Grades In Lancaster County In August

Two Lancaster County food establishments were posting B grades and one was posting a C at some point during August, according to inspection reports from the South Carolina Department of Agriculture.

The agency logged 48 inspections in the county during the month, counting routine visits and follow-ups. One business, Smalls Food Center in Heath Springs, accounted for both a B and a C after the inspector returned and found problems from the first visit still in place.

The Department of Agriculture scores retail food establishments on a 100-point scale and posts a letter grade decal at each site after every inspection. A score of 88 or higher earns an A, 78 to 87 earns a B, and 77 or below earns a C. The posted grade does not always match the score. State regulation lets inspectors lower a grade for consecutive violations or for priority violations that have not been fixed by the time of a follow-up.

Smalls Food Center in Heath Springs

Smalls Food Center, at 4517 Kershaw-Camden Highway, scored 85 points on a routine inspection Aug. 11. The inspector found organic matter growing on honeydew and cantaloupe in the produce section, a consecutive violation the report says may be referred to enforcement, and a hand sink in the meat department that would not get above 82 degrees. Hand sinks are required to reach 100 degrees. Cheese and sour cream in the market dairy cooler were at 46 and 47 degrees, above the 41-degree limit for cold holding.

The report also describes heavy ice buildup around the walk-in freezer door, buckled and lifted freezer floors, condensation in the dairy cooler, debris and organic matter on the walls, floors, ceilings and condensers of both walk-ins, an air gap at the receiving roll-up doors and exposed raw concrete on floors throughout the store.

When the inspector returned Aug. 21, the meat department hand sink still topped out at 82 degrees and the equipment, air gap and flooring problems were unchanged. The store scored 91 points, enough for an A on the numbers alone, and the report records an automatic downgrade to a C. Another follow-up was required within 10 days. None appears in the August records.

Jomars Family Restaurant in Lancaster

Jomars Family Restaurant, at 278 Lancaster Bypass East, scored 82 points on a routine inspection Aug. 21 that also verified a complaint against the business.

Cold holding on the buffet was out across the board, with shredded cheese and diced ham at 55 degrees, potato salad at 54, cut tomatoes at 57, and alfalfa sprouts and ranch dressing at 59. The inspector flagged it as a consecutive violation that may be referred to enforcement and noted it was not corrected during the visit. Fried fish and collard greens on the buffet were at 128 degrees and fried chicken at 120, below the 135-degree minimum for hot food, and the kitchen was reheating fried chicken in the hot holding unit rather than bringing it up to temperature first.

Fabricated meat in the meat cooler, macaroni and cheese in the walk-in prep cooler and horseradish sauce in the server’s cooler had no date marks. The report also lists wet wiping cloths kept outside sanitizer buckets, cracked plastic containers, and debris built up on the hood over the dish machine, on the walk-in freezer floor and in the buffet cabinets. A follow-up was required within 10 days. None appears in the August records.

Inspection reports for every permitted food establishment in South Carolina, including the full reports summarized here, are posted on the SC Food Grades tool, which can be reached through the Department of Agriculture website at agriculture.sc.gov.