Cracker Barrel is known for providing a 'friendly home away from home atmosphere' in their old country store and restaurant. But one location had too many roaches calling the place home.
On Tuesday, September 1, the location at 6150 Lazy Days Blvd. in Seffner had to temporarily close its doors overnight after inspectors found over 50 live roaches crawling all over the kitchen.
Live roaches were seen on the cook's line, reach in cooler, microwave shelf, counters near the shake unit, on the steamer, wait station area and under the oven.
Dead roaches were also discovered near the steam table, grill freezer and prep area.
During that inspection a week ago, inspectors also documented 37 violations including cold food held at greater than 41 degrees Fahrenheit with the reach-in cooler not working properly, raw animal food stored over ready-to-eat food with raw chicken, raw beef and raw ground beef over cheese sauce and gravy and food prepared onsite and held more than 24 hours that was not properly date marked.
Other violations include old food debris on the interior of the reach-in cooler, food storage containers and dishes as well as grease/debris build up on the hood filters.
The Division of Hotels and Restaurants reopened the Seffner Cracker Barrel on Wednesday, September 2.
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Cracker Barrel Statement:
Cracker Barrel Old Country Store has the highest regard for our guests and the experiences they have when they visit one of our locations. On Tuesday, September 1, our Seffner store was temporarily closed at the request of the Health Department. We took this isolated incident very seriously and immediately worked to address the issues and, in less than 24 hours, were authorized by the Health Department to reopen the location. As part of our commitment to our guests and to delivering the experience we have become known for, we have used this opportunity to reinforce our brand standards to ensure that this type of situation does not happen in the future.
Janella Escobar
Corporate Communications Director
Cracker Barrel
