Rodents, roaches cause Delray restaurant’s closure

A Delray Beach restaurant was forced to temporarily close after a May 10 inspection found unsatisfactory conditions.

Michel Caribbean Restaurant, 1561 S. Congress Ave., was temporarily shut down because rodent and roach activity were evident.

Inspectors found gnaw marks made from rodents on to-go containers and cups, 20 fresh rodent droppings on the lid of a plastic container and hundreds of other rodent droppings in and around coolers and drawers that inspectors say were not being used by the restaurant.

Four live roaches were found inside a walk-in cooler, while two other roaches were found under a sink and inside an oven. Flies were also in the food preparation area.

A stop sale was also issued on potentially hazardous chicken that had cooled overnight.

Owner Finoire Michel says that all the issues from the inspection were resolved within 24 hours, and the restaurant was reopened quickly. Michel is working with management to fix a pair of doors in the restaurant to ensure that the facility passes future inspections.

Several establishments in Palm Beach County had perfect inspections, including a pair of KFC restaurants in Greenacres, one at 6712 Forest Hill Blvd. and the other at 4507 Lake Worth Road.

Sand Wedges, at 3650 Club Place in Boca Raton, and Boca Green Country Club, at 19642 Trophy Drive in Boca Raton, also received perfect inspections.