Chipotle Mexican Grill was ordered to discontinue food operations following an inspection Jan. 16 by the Philadelphia Department of Public Health. The Office of Food Protection observed “imminent health hazards" at the location on the 3900 block of Walnut street during the inspection, which lasted from 10:55 a.m. to 1:45 p.m.
The location will not be allowed to operate for a minimum of 48 hours. They must correct the issues, pay a fine of $315, and contact the Department of Public Health for another inspection before being allowed to reopen.
Passersby found out about the closure from the yellow and white sign emblazoned on the restaurant's door, notifying patrons that the restaurant was in violation of Title 6, Chapter 6–300 of the Philadelphia Code.
The Philadelphia Inquirer’s Clean Plates project, which allows users to search food inspection reports from the area, reported four instances of “lack of good retail practices” at the location. The inspection found zero evidence of "foodborne illness risk factors," which the Inquirer's guide to interpreting inspection data says are "given higher priority."
The official inspection record from the City of Philadelphia spells out the four violations. One of them is “physical evidence of rodent/insect activity,” including roaches in the food prep area and "potential rodent harborage areas inside the food facility." The other violations include a lack of labels of bulk food storage containers, grout in the food prep area, and deep scratches on cutting boards.
The Cease Operations order at Chipotle
Clean Plates data shows that, over 4,788 inspections in University City since 2009, the average total number of violations is 5.9, with varying degrees of seriousness.
The last time the Chipotle at 3925 Walnut Street was inspected on Nov 29, 2018, four violations were also found. The restaurant was “not in satisfactory compliance" with the Philadelphia Health Code. The city ordered it to take corrective measures, but the inspection form from November did not include a Cease Operations Order.
Chipotle's corporate press office did not respond to an immediate request for comment.
This is a breaking story and will be updated with new developments.
