A popular Edmonton restaurant has re-opened after what Alberta Health Services described as “a heavy cockroach infestation.” An inspector issued a closure notice for Piccolino Bistro earlier this month but the notice was rescinded on Sept. 23, AHS said.
The inspector said they found “live cockroaches and cockroach frass/fecal matter… present in multiple areas of the facility: on door frames, walls, food equipment, front coffee area, the bar, pizza oven area, the motor housing interior, the ceiling above ice machine, shelving used for storing clean dishes, shelving under the hot holding units.”
AHS also said there was evidence of vole and mouse activity.
Piccolino, which is located on 142 Street and 91 Avenue, has had 11 interactions with AHS in the last 12 months.
The notice of closure was issued Sept. 19 and action was pending as of Sept. 21, according to the AHS website. The inspection report said the inspector met on-site with the owner and the pest control company Sept. 21 to assess the cleaning progress and to review the closure order.
A spokesperson with AHS told Global News the restaurant was closed between Sept. 19 and Sept. 23 but that owners worked with AHS and all issues were addressed.
The restaurant was open on Friday, with some regular customers of the restaurant defending Piccolino’s reputation.
“It’s clean and it’s really good food,” Janice Farquhar said. She heard about the issues at the restaurant on Friday but decided to visit it for lunch anyway.
“We’ve always had really good food and never been sick. I’ve never had any issues, never seen anything.”
Phillip Starkman spoke with Global News after eating lunch at the restaurant. He said he has been eating there twice a week for at least five years.
“This is a great Italian restaurant. You have to understand – take a look at all restaurants in the City of Edmonton – I can guarantee you on any given day you will see a little cockroach. You will see a little creepy crawly. You know why? You have food, you have moisture, you have heat.”
Starkman said he is not perturbed by reports of the infestation and plans to continue eating at the restaurant.
The health officer noted conditions “which are or may become injurious or dangerous to the public health or which might hinder in any manner the prevention or suppression of disease.”
The notice of closure stated the restaurant was not kept clean and sanitary.
READ MORE: 5 things a Canadian food safety expert will never eat
“Accumulation of grime, grease, dust and food debris were noted in all secondary use areas and all hard to reach areas including but not limited to: the pizza oven, the interior of the ice machine… cook equipment, all containers, all shelving, all walls, all doors… the entire pop syrup station… all counters and edging.”
The notice also said plates and utensils that were cleaned weren’t actually clean.
“Food and spills were observed on the surfaces as well as cockroach fecal matter. The ‘clean’ utensils/plate ware was stored on top of wire rack shelving that was filthy and covered in grease and dirt. Live cockroaches were observed all over the drying racks.
Comments