A judge has recommended shutting down the Szechuan Panda Chinese Restaurant for repeated health violations that were not corrected over several inspections between December 2007 and March of this year.
Administrative Law Judge Ella Jane Davis issued the recommended order Nov. 19 after an Aug. 5 hearing for owner Yu Zeng Kang to dispute a complaint filed by the Florida Department of Business and Professional Regulation Division of Hotels and Restaurants.
The division is scheduled to issue the final order Friday, after which the owner has 30 days to appeal. After 30 days, the division would revoke the restaurant's license the following Monday.
The restaurant, at 3830 SW 13th St.,Gainesville, FL 32608-3510, was closed Monday during its normal business hours. Phone numbers for the restaurant and its owner were disconnected. The property owner has an unlisted number.
Daniel Fulton, senior sanitation and safety specialist with the division, inspected the restaurant five times between Dec. 19, 2007, and March 30, 2008. He reported repeat violations that included live roaches in food preparation and food service areas, dead roaches throughout the building, food stored at improper temperatures, an "unidentified slime" growing in a food container, food stored directly on the floor and improper utensils used to handle food.
According to the judge's order, Kang responded through an interpreter that most of the violations were because "Chinese cooking was not conducive to meeting the regulations."
Kang also testified that dead roaches were swept out every night, however the judge noted that those found the following morning remained until the nightly cleaning, the order said.
Kang could not be reached for comment Monday.
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