In 5 months, 2 restaurants failed inspections
BROOKFIELD — The health department inspected 24 local establishments over five months, with eight earning perfect scores and only two failing.
Both failing restaurants, Maggie McFly’s and Little Bit Eatery, passed on a second round of inspections, according to the health department.
While five establishments in Danbury failed in May alone, it is fairly common for smaller towns like Brookfield to see fewer failures, said Lisa Yu, Brookfield assistant sanitarian.
“As their only food inspector, I routinely inspect them and they are able to understand what I look for when it comes to violations,” she said in an email.
Brookfield has 80 food establishments. In comparison, Monroe has 100, where seven food service operations failed inspections in the first three months of the year. Monroe inspected 45 establishments in that time.
Meanwhile, Brookfield High School, Center Elementary School, Whisconier Middle School, Taco Bachi, Costco, Subway and the two Dunkin’ Donuts at 270 and 782 Federal Road earned perfect scores, according to the health department.
“It is more common for the smaller operations that have a simpler menu to have perfect scores since there is little to no cooking involved,” Yu said.
Other restaurants received scores in the 90s and high 80s. The 24 establishments were inspected between between Jan. 3 to May 5.
Maggie McFly’s failed in late March because of outof-temperature foods, while Little Bit Eatery failed in late February because of out-of-temperature foods and a blocked hand wash sink, Yu said.
Kitchens must score an 80 or above to pass inspections, Yu said. But restaurants fail automatically if they violate certain rules, such as keeping outof-temperature foods or blocking hand wash sinks, she said.
That was the problem for Maggie McFly’s and Little Bit Eatery in their first inspections.
Both restaurants on Federal Road corrected the problems that led to their failures and passed when they were re-inspected about 21⁄2 weeks later, Yu said.
“We’re in compliance with the health department,” said a spokeswoman for Maggie McFly’s, a restaurant and bar with locations in Southbury, Middlebury and a few other towns in Connecticut and Virginia.
Owners or managers from Little Bit Eatery did not return requests for comment. The restaurant sells “a little bit of everything,” including breakfast, sandwiches, soups, salads, pasta and entrees, according to its website.
Maggie McFly’s earned an 82 on its March 27 inspection, according to the health department. The restaurant earned a 99 on April 12 when it was reinspected.
Meanwhile, Little Bit Eatery received an 85 on Feb. 28. On re-inspection, the restaurant earned a 95 on March 19, according to the health department.
It is easier for the department to follow up with restaurants that fail inspections since Brookfield does not have as many as bigger towns or cities.
“We have only about 80 food establishments in town, which makes it more feasible for us to maintain our health inspections while ensuring that all food establishments are in good standing, especially after a recent failure,” Yu said.
Restaurants are inspected between every three months to once a year, depending on how simple or extensive their menu is, she said.