HOUSTON – A New Year means a fresh start and on this last day of 2015 some Houston restaurants are probably hoping for the same. We asked the Houston Health Department to tally up the scores and violations of every restaurant inspected in 2015 and send us those with the most serious violations throughout the year. They served up the top 5.
Prince's Hamburgers at 930 Main St. racked up several violations over the year, including cockroaches, black slime in the ice machine, off-temperature chili and an employee who didn't change their gloves even after handling raw meat.
The low-lights that landed Chacho's at 5350 North Freeway near Tidwell in our No. 4 spot include 50 pounds of off-temperature hamburger meat, black mold, and pink and green slime in the ice machine.
One block up at 5460 North Freeway is China Border where inspectors stopped by no fewer than five times this year. We dropped by in July to ask about the flies and roaches in the kitchen, and the off-temperature chicken and fish, but the manager ignored us and left her minor son to face our camera.
The Hibachi Super Buffet at 5601 West 34th St. is our runner-up. Inspectors closed the place in April for unsanitary conditions and condemned shrimp, crab, beef and chicken that was all off-temperature.
And the biggest violator of the health code in 2015 was Kelly's Cajun Grill inside Baybrook Mall. They earn the Restaurant Report Card crown for rodent droppings in the kitchen, no hot water on one visit, no water at all on another and off-temperature food that could make you sick.
It is unheard of to go every single inspection in a year with no violations, so we'll continue our A+s for the week in 2016.