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This week on DineSafe: Gabby's, Gamberoni Seafood, Globe Bistro, Guu Izakaya, Kelsey's, Lee Town Chinese, River Tai, Sang Restaurant

Posted by Robyn Urback / December 24, 2012

19 Comments

toronto dinesafeThis week on DineSafe had big names, big chains, and more than a couple of bad records. Proving that just any restaurant can be pegged with a conditional pass, the normally acclaimed Globe Bistro on Danforth, as well as Guu Izakaya in the Annex, got yellow signs after inspection. Chain bar and grills Gabby's and Kelsey's also found a couple of their locations on the DineSafe low list, along with a few perpetual offenders who never stray too far from the group of conditional passers. Here's a look at DineSafe this week.

Gabby's Grill House (2572 Yonge St)
Inspected on: December 18
Inspection finding: Yellow (Conditional Pass)
Number of infractions: 9 (Minor: 2, Significant: 6, Crucial: 0)
Crucial infractions include: N/A

Gamberoni Seafood (3238 Yonge St)
Inspected on: December 19
Inspection finding: Yellow (Conditional Pass)
Number of infractions: 5 (Minor: 2, Significant: 3, Crucial: 0)
Crucial infractions include: N/A

Globe Bistro (124 Danforth Ave)
Inspected on: December 20
Inspection finding: Yellow (Conditional)
Number of infractions: 3 (Minor: 0, Significant: 2, Crucial: 1)
Crucial infractions include: Failure to protect food from contamination

Guu Izakaya (559 Bloor St)
Inspected on: December 19
Inspection finding: Yellow (Conditional Pass)
Number of infractions: 3 (Minor: 0, Significant: 2, Crucial: 1)
Crucial infractions include: Failure to protect food from contamination

Kelsey's (1215 McCowan Rd)
Inspected on: December 17
Inspection finding: Yellow (Conditional Pass)
Number of infractions: 6 (Minor: 2, Significant: 4, Crucial: 0)
Crucial infractions include: N/A

Lee Town Chinese Restaurant (370 Yonge St)
Inspected on: December 17
Inspection finding: Yellow (Conditional Pass)
Number of infractions: 8 (Minor: 4, Significant: 2, Crucial: 2)
Crucial infractions include: Failure to protect food from contamination, inadequate food temperature control

River Tai (92 Harbord St)
Inspected on: December 17
Inspection finding: Yellow (Conditional Pass)
Number of infractions: 5 (Minor: 3, Significant: 1, Crucial: 1)
Crucial infractions include: Failure to protect food from contamination

Sang Restaurant (1926 Weston Road)
Inspected on: December 18
Inspection finding: Yellow (Conditional Pass)
Number of infractions: 7 (Minor: 4, Significant: 1, Crucial: 1)
Crucial infractions include: Inadequate food temperature control

Discussion

19 Comments

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Bruce / December 24, 2012 at 11:14 am
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This "reporting" on DineSafe is tired and lazy. You carry out this public shame campaign giving very wide coverage to what is really a very local, minor and fixable situation. Seems like punishment enough that small businesses have to show this report on their front window. If you really think there is a story why not call some of the owners and let them provide some context for why they failed. May turn out that otherwise well meaning business owners have reasonable explanations. How about reporting on all the restaurants who have made addressed the issues? As it is now this section comes off as nothing more than mean spirited filler.

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BH replying to a comment from Bruce / December 24, 2012 at 11:36 am
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Maybe you don't mind if the meats and seafood aren't kept cold and you risk getting sick, and the staff don't wash their hands or wear hair nets so you don't get any surprises in your food, but us normal people do.

Without the word getting out these restaurants will just let it slide--just look at some of the repeat offenders on Dinesafe, some of whom don't even comply with the original reports. There's nothing lazy about public health awareness.
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CaligulaJones / December 24, 2012 at 11:39 am
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Bruce, on one hand you are correct: I know a bar owner who received a yellow card because he had some expired test strips. A very minor thing, easily fixed.

On the other hand, when a place has MULTIPLE yellows, and reds, it would be a large stretch of credulity to believe that its just being mean spirited, as opposed to being a public service, to, um, rat these place sout.
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Bea / December 24, 2012 at 12:00 pm
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Sounds like Bruce is/was featured in one of these posts.
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Me / December 24, 2012 at 12:01 pm
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I doubt BlogTO would have much of an impact either way really as it's a minute percentage of Torontonians who even know it exists and even a smaller percentage that take anything in it very seriously.
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ASD / December 24, 2012 at 12:41 pm
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Gabby's oh my God. Are they still in business? Went there three years ago and asked for a burger....they presented me with something like a 1872 burger with a yellow lettuce broken leaf, a disintegrating slice of tomato and a pickle that smells like toilet cleaner.
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Bruce replying to a comment from Bea / December 24, 2012 at 02:15 pm
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Clever but no, I have nothing to do with the food industry other than being a patron.

I simply sympathize with small businesses whose contribution to local economy and culture is worthy of some defence when a blog is simply rehashing content from the people we already pay to enforce this.

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evan / December 24, 2012 at 02:24 pm
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I'm with Bruce, maybe if there was a more detailed scorecard (first offense, 20th offense) it might be a little more fair. As it stands, people see a name and then they come in and comment EWWWW THEY HAVE PILES OF RATS, and it does end up being kind of unfair.
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Bruce replying to a comment from CaligulaJones / December 24, 2012 at 02:26 pm
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I do take your point that there are different degrees guilt but that sort of reinforces my feeling that this is lazy reporting.

Are these just the offenders from this week or is there a story that goes along with it? Are these the worst of the worst that deserve to be "ratted" out or was this just the content that was available this week.

Seems like all are treated equally guilty once you hit this page.


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Bruce replying to a comment from BH / December 24, 2012 at 02:27 pm
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BH - what do "normal" people do when they travel and there is no DineSafe to protect them?
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Lo / December 24, 2012 at 02:55 pm
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As always more than half are Asian restos
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BH replying to a comment from Bruce / December 24, 2012 at 11:35 pm
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I'll take the risk when I travel because there's no choice, but why do it in Toronto? It's bad enough I generally pay more for meals here to begin with, so at the very least they should be clean.
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mike / December 25, 2012 at 12:13 am
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Just putting in my 2 cents, after working in the food industry there are some health inspectors that are just complete power hungry dicks (some, most are fair) for one restaurant I worked for everything was clean as can be. The owner was OCD in a good way but one time a power hungry inspector found out that one of the thermometers in the fridge wasn't working properly (it was the right temp though) in turn that resto got hit with a yellow for failure to protect food from contamination.

So yeh check chill out people, toronto health needs a better way to judge these restaurants and blogto pretty shitty of you to hurt these businesses this way.
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Peter replying to a comment from Bruce / December 26, 2012 at 10:30 am
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So, which restaurant(s) do you own Bruce? I really don't believe that you aren't connected to the food service industry?

Remember everyone, more detailed histories of inspections are available from Toronto Public Health.
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Mike replying to a comment from mike / December 26, 2012 at 11:57 am
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I would be okay if blogto just posted restaurants that were forced to be closed after an inspection. That way only restaurants that have serious infractions are posted.
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Bruce replying to a comment from Peter / December 26, 2012 at 05:32 pm
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Not sure that it would change the argument much even if I was but I am a web developer not a restaurant owner. What's you interest in making the distinction?

You should be as skeptical of this blog as you are of the comments.
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Bruce replying to a comment from Bruce / December 26, 2012 at 05:38 pm
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Sorry this was a comment for Peter. Seems I started a new thread.
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Bruce replying to a comment from CaligulaJones / December 26, 2012 at 06:19 pm
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Just saw a post "best of dead pool 2012". Maybe it's not such a stretch to think blogto has a mean streak. Though you could interpret that one as an homage to the past it really feels like dancing on graves.
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bilbo / January 2, 2013 at 09:48 pm
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Lets not forget about restaurants/bars calling the health department on their competitors or in some cases planting infractions. This happens a lot more frequently than you think.

This does not however excuse poor sanitation and general restaurant food handling. I personally think that Toronto Health Department is to lax....

Irresponsible landlords is also a problem.


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