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Food Safety Inspections

June 13, 2018 10:58AM
I noticed a reasonably well paying shop at a restaurant location that is a very short walk from home, so I opened the email. It turns out not to be a mystery shop, rather a food safety inspection, anticipated to take approximately 4 hours of time. This is curious to me...so I guess it means the restaurant owners want someone to inspect their own restaurant for them - in advance of a professional safety inspection performed by the local authorities? I just wonder why they would not use their own staff, unless it's a travel issue? The instructions say the "shopper" will be given an authorization letter to show the local store management. Also, presumably a long list of things to check. I thought food safety inspections required special training? perhaps I overestimate the knowledge required to be in that profession. I don't have the time or interest to do this "shop", just curious about it. Have you done one like this? how was it?
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June 13, 2018 11:19AM
I haven't done this shop, but when I worked in a fast food joint, we were required to have inspections done by EcoSure labs. She came in with probes, wipes, and mold testers and went about the store as well as a long list of check items. The safety part from corporate was much different from the one from the health department. That one was also tedious, but different.

Myself, I had to have the ServSafe management and restaurant safety exam which covered a lot of basics on safety, food, store, etc. At the very least, I would think that would be a requirement to perform these, or a food handlers permit. I would wager to say someone with a fresh pair of eyes outside the company could be more lenient or more strict. In-house, tons of questions! Are chemical buckets at a certain ph level, are red towels used for raw food, do all buckets have towels, etc etc. as well as if daily temp logs are filled out. List could go on. I'm with you on this -- kind of odd they didn't send someone, but then if I think about it, it may cost them $150 to rent a car, $600 for a flight, $400 for a hotel, and $100-$200 more expenditure in gas and food for a company rep to head out and be put up in the area for two days. Why not pay a local $50-$200 to do it instead and if they goof it up, just not pay and try again?

MegglesKat
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June 13, 2018 12:26PM
yes, it's interesting - because basically what they are paying for is to have Average Joe without a background in food safety processes - to walk in off the street and perform a food safety inspection. I am not sure I want to eat there again lol.
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June 13, 2018 02:49PM
$35 payment and zero training for the same company that pays between $5 and $7 for a gas station shop.

Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 06/13/2018 03:43PM by spicy1.
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June 13, 2018 03:27PM
I did these in convenience stores. it is a long list but each test of the check just takes a few seconds. Once you have done the whole list once, you can do it in 15 minutes. It is revealed so it is easier than mystery shopping, you can write things down in plain sight.
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June 13, 2018 05:27PM
I have done a few of these shops in the past. You don't need any special training. You will be checking the refrigerator temperature and freezer, each as a thermometer to read. Just write down the temp. You will be looking for cleanliness. All of the information you need is on the work sheet. The shops I did, did not take 4 hours, maybe an hour or less.
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June 14, 2018 12:51AM
The food sanitation inspectors do a deep tissue with the equipment and petrie dishes. The company is probably looking for a baseline to be done on the cheap.

"I told myself to quit you; but I don't listen to drunks." -Chris Stapleton
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June 16, 2018 03:42PM
They say to expect it to take on average, 4 hours to complete the shop.

I pass.
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June 16, 2018 03:52PM
Four hours for $35?

That's so far below the radar....insulting to us!

I, too, did these in convenience stores. Met the NICEST people! All the managers wanted to know how to meet the standards if they weren't. If I recall correctly, I was allowed to tell them anything that I found that was wrong -- missing thermometers, broken doors, anything at all, so they could fix it.

I assumed (and you know what assuming is worth, LOL!!! ) that it was a preventive audit. Much, much cheaper to fix anything that's wrong and/or provide further employee training than to be shut down by health department!
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June 16, 2018 03:57PM
This shop pays $85 for what they claim will take 4 hours. I still don't find that worthwhile.
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June 16, 2018 03:58PM
Oops. Bad eyes. I misread that as $35.

I'd probably attempt for the $85.
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June 16, 2018 04:47PM
Are these the "Western....." ones from the "degrees" company, they pay $35 in my area.
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June 16, 2018 06:52PM
No, this is a new client for them. The only other shops I have done for them are places where we order meat and potatoes. We have discussed them often here.
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June 16, 2018 08:03PM
I would be very skeptical about these shops. Food safety is an important issue, and god forbid, if some customer got sick and possibly died after your inspection, once the lawyers got ahold of it, you may be dragged into the fray. Imagine this. You report everything is fine regarding temperature and food dates. Then someone gets sick shortly after. They sue. The company lawyer says "We got a report that everything was great form our inspector". The prosecution attorney finds your identity through subpoenas and forces you to testify in court. They ask you about you "food safety" training and you admit you have none. Not saying you would be criminally liable, as you just took the job offered, but I could imagine a scenario about a lawyer filing a secondary law suite that assets you knowingly accepted a "A potentially life threating inspection without proper training or education". Lawyers are dicks (unless they are on your side) and don't expect the MSC to back you up.

Risk/reward scenarios seem way out of whack for these jobs. At least to me. Leave it to the pros. These companies are just trying to save money on real inspections.

proudly shopping in the D.
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June 17, 2018 12:21AM
and since mystery shoppers are not employees, the MSCs can distance themselves quickly and point the finger, leavving the IC standing out in the open, taking all the risk.

Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 06/17/2018 12:21AM by BarefootBliss.
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