Downtown Pittsburgh restaurant shut down after inspection
PITTSBURGH (KDKA) -- A restaurant in Downtown Pittsburgh was ordered to close for the second time this year after an inspector found several high-risk violations.
The Allegheny County Health Department shut down Caravan, a Uzbek restaurant on Smithfield Street, after an inspection on Wednesday. The eatery was also operating without a valid permit, the health department said.
Pest management at the restaurant was one of the high-risk violations the inspection report lists. The inspector said there was a mouse in the basement and there was a "large quantity" of mouse droppings under a stairwell. According to the report, the restaurant has 30-day pest control, but it needs treatment at least weekly.
Other high-risk violations included food held at too-high temperatures in a cooler and an employee who rinsed their gloves and didn't change them after using his phone. The health department says a violation is considered high risk if it may lead directly to food-borne illness or injury.
The report also lists medium- and low-risk violations. The inspector said there's no food preparation sink, which is required "due to the large amount of produce in use" and a bag of decomposing carrots was found in the basement.
According to the health department's website, the placard status for the restaurant is red, meaning it was ordered to close. Caravan was also ordered to close in April and later reopened, according to the website.