interesting article on restaurant ratings in louisville

I heard a story on WHAS radio that said that under the new system, restaurants will post their grades from their last three inspections. That seems like a good idea; it will help put the most recent rating in context. There's more about the system at the city's website:

http://www.louisvilleky.gov/News/default.htm

(it's currently the third news item, from Aug. 25)

speaking of dana, there is interesting article from food critic steve coomes.
http://insiderlouisville.com/news/2011/ ... na-mcmahan’s-visible-face/
i guess mr. rosen's on a 3 week break.

This article is interesting to me in that I see a shift in the 'old-school' critical paradigm...

As Steve had pointed out, restauranteurs are figuring out how to spot the critic. It's actually not that tough. They are writers! And have expansive knoweledge of food and beverage! They'll ask questions very few people ask. Really, it's not that they may ask these questions, but it's how they ask these questions.

When a restaurant first opens, our local critics generously give them a month or so to get the concrete under thier feet. Even without a picture, anyone who falls under the 'possible critic' category gets the follow-up-in-the kitchen from management during this time.

Now, this is where I differ from some of my colleagues: I am a stickler for the 'give them the same service as anyone else' approach. Yeah, you might gain a short-term boost from an inflated review, but you won't be able to sustain that business. People will come in with certain expectations and then you won't deliver on said promises. This equals lost business. With regards to guests, I like to invest in the long-haul, so to speak. I also feel that a professional critic will give you the best evaluation of where you stand- what you're good at and where you can improve. Things you may not have even thought of or even seen, yet.

I've even spotted critics and not told the server- many times this knoweledge can make the server overeact- generally they become overbearing, annoying the critic while letting thier other tables suffer, hoping to get the mention in the paper or impressing the bosses. Better to let them be themselves- that's why you hired them to begin with.

The paradigm has shifted, in my opinion, with the rise of social media and the opportunities created by the renaissance in FnB. Why wouldn't Robin take time to participate in church activities? Or Steve to judge a Dumante competition at Sullivan? Or Dana to make crepes at the farmer's market? They do much greater good involving themselves in the community, than sitting at home- outcasts to thier calling.

Besides, they all have tricks to tell if a certain review is warranted. I tend to do the same. I'm no critic, but am sure to run my mouth about great establishments. And I know a bunch of the local restaurant folks because I love being active in the community. I also announce myself because I love chatting with these friends at the end of the meal.

Many times it's the only opportunity we will get to catch-up until the next 'Taste of' or 'Benefit for' or whatever...

(I'm short on time and long on words, so insert summation paragraph here)

Wow Robin, you are going WAAAYYY back. I was a paperboy back in the mid 70's and remember delivering both papers, but the only columnist I can remember was Richard Des Rousseaux. (sp?) He was a funny tongue-in-cheek kind of writer, but that is the best I can come up with.

Yep, Richard Des Ruisseaux, a very funny man. He was the first Scene dining columnist and must have held the post for five years or so. He then went on to write a city column for The Times, but as I recall, it was killed at the time of merger or before, perhaps because the more staid folks at the CJ didn't really get his style of humor. He became a copy editor, then left to start the short-lived Snitch, a local magazine that covered Louisville crime with an "if it bleeds, it leads" philosophy.

Getting the ones who came between Desaroo and Neuhauser is going to be tougher, but I'll bet there are other Baby Boomer foodies around this forum who can dig it up. Hints: One went on to become a NPR correspondent. Another is still at the CJ.

Was Jack Roby at the C-J? 'm not sure if it was the C-J or the Times, but he was reviewing in that general timeframe before moving to the Voice..

[Robin Garr]

Was Jack Roby at the C-J? 'm not sure if it was the C-J or the Times, but he was reviewing in that general timeframe before moving to the Voice..

Jack was indeed at the CJ, the last critic there ... when the papers merged, the two columns became one, and they kept me, probably because I was a reporter on staff whereas Jack was a free-lancer. Then we were competitors. Now we both provide content to The Voice-Tribune.

The CJ didn't have a dining column for very long during the two-paper era. The Times kicked it off with Scene and Des Ruisseaux. The CJ came along several years later and stopped upon the merger until they closed the Times. I'm not sure who was CJ critic before Jack. Leslie Ellis, I think.

There are still a couple of Times critics who came after Desaroo and before Ken ... I'll leave that question unanswered for a while longer to see if any graying food-trivia experts can fill in the blanks.

Just a shot in the dark, but did Dudley Saunders ever do restaurant reviews?

[Robin Garr]

Just a shot in the dark, but did Dudley Saunders ever do restaurant reviews?

Great guess, but no, Dudly was a theater guy, The Times' answer - and a sound one - to the CJ's Bill Mootz.

As I said up the thread, I think we've got all but the two (?) between Desaroo, the original Food Dad, and Ken Neuhauser, who preceded moi.

One of those two went on to minor fame for a national news medium. The other stayed on and went corporate and, I believe, is still at the CJ in an editor's cubicle.

Taken from an email from the health dept:

Public Health and Wellness to Revise Food Placard System

LOUISVILLE, Ky. (August 25, 2011) Beginning September 1, the Metro Department of Public Health and Wellness will revise its ABC Restaurant Placard Program to more closely align it to the Kentucky Retail Food Code that went into effect on May 1, 2010. The new state food code enacts measures that more effectively prevent food borne illness.

The placard system has been simplified. Now an “A” score will represent a passing facility, which meets the minimum requirements of the state food code. A “B” score will represent a facility that is under administrative review; it has a history of failing 2 successive inspections or was closed due to imminent health issues. A “C” score will represent a facility that has failed its most recent inspection by either scoring below 85 or by having a critical(s) violation.

Critical violations are those which are most likely to cause food borne illness, such as spoiled food, food kept at unsafe temperatures, improper re-serving of food, improper hand washing or bare hand contact with ready-to-eat food.

The new placard system provides more information to the consumer. Not only will the new placards list the current letter grade and score, they will also list letter grades and numerical scores for the restaurant’s previous two inspections.

“The inspection process is the tool that regulates the facility and ensures food safety. The placard is a way to communicate information to the public,” said Matt Rhodes, Public Health and Wellness Deputy Director.

“The new placard system more closely aligns the actual letter grade with what the public perceives the letter grade to mean. We’ve received feedback from both consumers and restaurant operators that the public perceives a B grade to mean Bad. Now the B rating will be reserved for those restaurants that have had a history of repeatedly failing inspections,” said Rhodes.
The new placard system is as follows:

A = 85-100% with no critical violations. An “A” placard acknowledges safe food handling practices and designates that the facility meets the requirements of the Kentucky State Food Code without critical violations. The “A” placard will remain posted until the next routine inspection.

B = Will include ALL facilities that have failed 2 regular consecutive inspections, have failed a follow-up inspection, or were closed during the regular inspection due to imminent public health violations. The “B” placard will remain posted until the facility passes its next regular inspection.

C = 84% or below will include ALL inspections with critical violations. A “C” placard indicates that a food service facility has failed to meet minimum requirements of the Kentucky State Food Code. This will include a score with any critical violations. The “C” placard will be placed for a minimum of seven (7) days and not more than ten (10) days. A follow-up inspection will be conducted and the applicable placard posted.

A facility that is closed by the Metro Department of Public Health and Wellness for imminent public health violations, regardless of the numeric score, will be required to post a B placard after passing the next follow-up inspection. The B placard will be posted regardless of the passing numeric score. The B placard must be displayed until the next routine inspection.

A facility that fails two (2) consecutive regular inspections will be under administrative review. Any restaurant that fails two consecutive inspections will be required to post a “B” until its next unscheduled inspection.

Those facilities that fail a single inspection will be re-inspected within 7- 10 days and the subsequent placard will reflect the follow-up inspection grade. If the re-inspection score is 85 or higher and no critical violations were detected, the facility will earn an “A” placard. However, the placard will also display the previous two inspection results including the “C” and the failing numerical score.

People wishing to have regular food safety bulletins delivered to their email may do so by signing up at https://public.govdelivery.com/accounts ... criber/new