4 restaurants in Beaufort Co. given ‘B’ and ‘C’ grades in August health inspections
Four Beaufort County restaurants were cited with grades below an A in August health inspections by the S.C. Department of Health and Environmental Control.
One restaurant known for its donations to charity scored the lowest letter grade of a C and had been closed two days for construction at the time of the inspection.
Johnson Creek Tavern and Restaurant on Harbor Island scored a C (73%) on Aug. 2. The inspector cited issues with labeling on shellfish, cutting board sanitation, soda gun, ice machine and grill cleaning, temperature issues, insects and evidence of rodent activity, along with building maintenance.
A follow-up inspection on Aug. 12 raised the restaurant’s score to an A (97%). Another follow-up inspection will be performed before Oct. 12.
Owner Jay T. Lloyd said that when the inspector initially arrived, the restaurant had been closed to replace the hood exhaust system and that the ceiling had been cut open, leaving a mess throughout the kitchen.
“A cleaning crew was coming in to do a cleaning before we opened up,” he said. “We had no intention of serving food, and we were closed” when the inspector showed up.
The restaurant didn’t open until the next day.
For more than two decades, Johnson Creek Tavern has allowed customers to tack dollar bills on its walls. Periodically, the money is pulled down and donated to charity. In 2020, an estimated $11,000 was given to Honor Flight Savannah. Other beneficiaries have been Wounded Warriors and Pledge the Pink.
3 receive B grades in inspections
Three Beaufort County businesses scored B’s in routine inspections in August, including Baleada Express and Don Chanito Pizza in Bluffton and Brickyard Pub on Hilton Head.
Those businesses, too, were able to turn their scores into As before the end of the month in follow-up inspections.
From Aug. 1-31, DHEC recorded 195 inspections of restaurants, schools, grocery stores and other food establishments in Beaufort County. The agency publishes the results of health inspections on its website.
Inspectors hand out a grade of A, B or C, depending on the conditions found at the time. Points are docked for a variety of infractions, and restaurants have a chance to correct the problems and improve their score.
Below are the SC DHEC restaurant grades in Beaufort County from Aug. 1-31, 2022. At the top of the chart, there is a space to search for the name of a restaurant.
