Gross Out: Raw, Dripping Chicken at Shangri La

Shangri La? Not the first image that comes to mind when you read the recent county restaurant inspection report for the so-named Chinese restaurant on Alma School Road in Mesa. Raw sprouts were too warm. There was no hand soap in the employee restroom. Opened cans of food were stored...

By Amy Silverman

March 16, 2009

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Shangri La? Not the first image that comes to mind when you read the recent county restaurant inspection report for the so-named Chinese restaurant on Alma School Road in Mesa.

Raw sprouts were too warm. There was no hand soap in the employee restroom. Opened cans of food were stored too long. Boxes of raw duck were in the wrong place, as was a bag of carrots. There were soiled sponges at the hand sink, cooked chicken without a date, and the sink on the cook line was starting to back up.

And only a direct quote will do here:

"ICE MACHINE SOILED WITH BLACK & BROWN BUILD UP (INSIDE FRONT PANEL & UNDER PANEL WHERE CHUTE IS). ... LARGE CUTTING BOARDS PITTED, SCORED & STAINED."

But that's not Shangri La's worst transgression. Many failing inspections (this is one of them, in case you haven't guessed) include mention of raw food stored over other food. Doesn't always seem to be that big of a deal, frankly. But this inspection report underscores the importance of proper storage:

"TWO BOXES OF RAW CHICKEN BEING STORED AND DRIPPING OVER TWO BOXES OF LETTUCE...."

Maybe we'll eat at our desks today.

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Amy Silverman is the former managing editor of Phoenix New Times. She is a two-time winner of the Arizona Press Club’s Journalist of the Year award. Her work has appeared on the radio show This American Life and in the New York Times, the Washington Post, Lenny Letter, and Brain, Child.