Milpitas pho restaurant cleared to reopen after video shows employee slamming meat on ground

article

Bowl of Vietnamese tradional pho chicken noodle soup in a street restaurant. Tan Chau. Vietnam.. (photo by: Godong/ Universal Images Group via Getty Images)

MILPITAS, Calif. - A Milpitas pho restaurant was cleared by health officials to reopen Tuesday after it closed last week over unsafe handling of frozen ribs, improper food storage and cockroaches. 

Pho Love, located at 55 N. Milpitas Boulevard, was forced to close after a video circulating online showed an employee slamming frozen slabs of short ribs on the ground behind the restaurant. 

The video, posted on TikTok and Reddit, showed an employee of Pho Love in an alleyway behind the restaurant. The worker was seen hurling racks of ribs onto what appeared to be a piece of cardboard on the ground. The meat appeared to touch the concrete several times and a nearby mop bucket.

A complaint was filed with the Santa Clara County Department of Environmental Health, which sent an inspector to Pho Love on Thursday to investigate.

Pho Love can reopen, health department says

The backstory:

This week, Santa Clara County Environmental Health officials conducted a follow-up inspection and approved the restaurant to reopen. 

"Environmental health specialists had conducted a full investigation on November 20 at the food facility after a video circulated online showing unsafe handling of what appeared to be frozen ribs on the ground outside," the department said in a statement. "Following the investigation, Environmental Health closed Pho Love, requiring the operator to correct major violations and demonstrate acceptable food handling practices."

At the restaurant last week, the inspector found the same employee seen in the viral video. The worker said they were trying to thaw the meat by throwing it on the ground, according to the official inspection report. The employee said it was a one-time occurrence and that they went outside because there was no space on the food prep counter.

"When they realized that the meat was falling out of the package and onto the ground, they saw that the meat had become contaminated, and immediately discarded all of the meat," the report stated.

The employee told the inspector the short ribs seen in the video were not cooked or served to customers.

In addition to the unsanitary handling of food, the inspector found other violations, including improper food storage and cleaning practices. Employees did not have state-required food handler cards, and the inspector saw a live roach.

The inspector also observed an employee wash their hands without using soap.

Bay Area Whole Foods shut down by health inspectors due to 'vermin'

Health inspectors have shut down the Whole Foods Market on Stevens Creek Boulevard in Cupertino. This comes after repeated inspections turned up vermin in and around the store.

Health violations corrected

What's next:

On Tuesday, the environmental health department said the "major violations had been corrected."

"A review of the most recent pest control report showed there was no current cockroach activity, and no evidence of pests was observed during the inspection," the department said. "The facility has sanitizer available on site and demonstrated the ability to properly sanitize cooking equipment and utensils."

County environmental health officials will conduct an unannounced follow-up inspection in the coming weeks to ensure the restaurant is following safe food-handling protocols.

To view the full county report on Pho Love's most recent inspection, click here.