Health inspectors visited dozens of West Tennessee restaurants, school cafeterias, mobile units and other food service operations during the week of Oct. 24 through Oct. 30, and WBBJ-TV published the resulting scores in its weekly roundup.
The week in numbers
Counting every inspection listed across the counties WBBJ covers, there were 98 food-service inspections that week. Scores ranged from 83 to 100 and averaged roughly 97. About 23 establishments earned a perfect 100, and only three scored below 90. Of the 98 inspections, about 63 were routine and 35 were follow-up visits.
Madison County, where Jackson is located, accounted for the largest number of inspections, at 22. Those averaged about 98, and eight of them were perfect scores.
The lowest scores
WBBJ flags scores below 90 in its list, with links to the underlying inspection reports. This week those were Ann's Place at 83, Clifford's Bar and Grill LLC in Milan at 85, and Lenox Event & Golf Co. at 89. Those scores reflect conditions on the day of the inspection. A low score generally means inspectors found violations that must be corrected, and a follow-up inspection typically checks whether they were.
Examples of top marks
Among the businesses that posted 100s were Chick-fil-A, The Salvation Army, Cracker Barrel #284, Scooters Coffee, Mr. Baby Back and Tennessee Fish Fry. Several school and child-care kitchens also scored 100, including Miss Cheryl's Day Care Food and the Liberty High School cafeteria.
How to read the scores
Tennessee restaurant inspections are scored out of 100, with points deducted for violations involving things like food temperatures, handwashing, cross-contamination and sanitation. Scores in the 90s are common. One week's score is a snapshot, not a full record of a restaurant, and readers who want more detail can ask the county health department or look up the establishment's inspection history on the state's public records.
WBBJ publishes the list weekly, listing each county, the restaurant name, its address, whether the visit was routine or a follow-up, the inspection date and the score. A couple of counties had no inspections to report for the week.
Sources: WBBJ-TV