TAMPA, Fla. — In the heart of Ybor City, James Joyce Irish Pub and Eatery is a hot spot to catch a game or grab an ice-cold Guinness.
But March 25, just one week after St. Patrick’s Day, this popular Irish-themed establishment was temporarily shut down by the state with 26 violations.
Among the issues, the inspector documented plates on a dirty shelf with a hair follicle, a temperature violation on the mashed potatoes, and live roaches, with 15-20 counted around the reach-in cooler.
The inspector also wrote up an employee for picking up a plate of unfinished food then returning to serving without first washing her hands, and issued a stop sale on the ice after witnessing another employee take the ice scoop directly out of sanitizer then using it to scoop out ice for a drink without allowing that sanitizer to first dry or evaporate.
“I would definitely be worried about getting sick,” said former customer Joseph Baker. “Nothing is being properly handled.”
James Joyce was cleared to reopen a day after their emergency closure, so 10News stopped in to see if things were really cleaned up.
But when we asked to speak with someone about what was done to clean up the previous violations, an employee responded by saying, “No comment … Thank you.”
We also requested a copy of the restaurant’s latest health inspection report, something all food establishments are required to make available upon request from the public, but the employee again responded by saying, “no comment.”
A man who identified himself as restaurant security also refused to turn over the inspection report and told us we had to leave.
“You guys have to step out. You guys got to go,” the employee said.
And while restaurant staff had no comment, former customers had plenty to say about the restaurant’s list of 26 violations.
“Handling dirty dishes and then handling something that is plated to serve it to someone. That’s a big one,” said Baker.
Some of the problems weren’t even inside the restaurant. The health inspector documented the dumpsters overflowing with trash and filled with maggots and flies. Experts suggest that can lead to problems because some of those extra flies can get inside the restaurant and contaminate food.
“Flies can be as bad or worse than roaches because they and travel further distances and often land on animal feces which contain all of those viruses that can make us sick,” said food safety expert and trainer David Steck of “Serve it Up Safe.”
On our visit, we found that the back kitchen door still cracked open. And while staff didn’t want to show us a copy of their latest inspection report, that same information is available online.
We’ve posted the restaurant’s entire inspection history which you can view here.
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