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Food trucks inspections look for same health and safety issues as restaurants

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A food truck is a kitchen on wheels. The most noticeable difference from an average brick-and-mortar restaurant is you probably won’t find a food truck where you saw it last night.

That’s one of the toughest challenges when it comes to inspecting food trucks, said Gary Hagy, the Peninsula’s environmental health manager.

“Once we issue the permit, we don’t know where they are operating and it may be some time before we see them again or inspect them again,” Hagy said. “Obviously we try to be unannounced, but in some cases with mobile units, that may be difficult. We may have to call someone and say, ‘OK, tell us where you will be in the next couple weeks’ or something like that.”

But once they’re located, the inspection process is the same. Food establishments are inspected and given violations on a three-tier system of severity.

Most food trucks in Williamsburg and James City and York counties had no violations last year.

According to Virginia law, every eating establishment is inspected for food safety at least once a year. Inspectors look for whether food is stored at a safe temperature, for a safe amount of time. They look for proper sanitation, general hygiene and employee health as part of routine inspections.

“They still have the same standards that they have to meet as far as food protection goes: they still have to control the temperature, they’ve still got to keep things clean. They’ve still got to protect the food from contamination, the food has got to come from an approved source. They’ve got to wash their hands,” Hagy said.

“From the actual inspection standpoint, there really isn’t any difference.”

Food trucks are relatively new to the Historic Triangle, popping up within the past five years. Last year there were 28 permitted trucks in Williamsburg, James City and York counties, according to the Virginia Department of Health, although at least five of those are located inside Busch Gardens.

Getting started

Matchsticks BBQ Co. owners Matt and Nicole Sileno opened their food truck in spring 2018. As newcomers to owning a food operation, they set up meetings with the fire marshal and the health department before they started anything, Matt Sileno said.

Matchsticks BBQ Co. Owner Matt Sileno said they have to go to Richmond every week to pickup their meat and our produce because they don't have enough storage in the truck to get food delivered.
Matchsticks BBQ Co. Owner Matt Sileno said they have to go to Richmond every week to pickup their meat and our produce because they don’t have enough storage in the truck to get food delivered.

“I didn’t know anything about it. I was researching online but it’s like every county is different, every state is different,” Sileno said.

Food safety regulations are consistent across the state, no matter what kind of restaurant.

Priority violations, the most severe, are most associated with foodborne illness, such as food held at an incorrect temperature or in unsanitized equipment. These violations must be fixed within 72 hours and are often solved immediately.

Priority foundation violations are issues that may lead to priority violations if unaddressed, such as a broken sanitation thermometer, which tests the sanitation levels of cleaning supplies. Owners have 10 days to fix those violations.

Core violations, the least severe, are not directly associated with potential foodborne illness and are often categorized as minor sanitary issues or problems with the physical structure of a truck.

Matchsticks BBQ Co. was inspected by the health department twice in 2018. The first time they received no violations.

The second time the truck received one core violation and one priority foundation violation, one in relation to a new requirement to have a Certified Food Protection Manager and the other on a requirement for employees to be informed of their responsibility to report health concerns to a person in charge.

“We’ve been inspected at large events … they know a lot of food trucks are going to be there and they can kill five birds with one stone. They’ve snuck up on us in that regard, but we’re not worried about it because with the truck we try to maintain it as best we can at all times,” Sileno said.

“There’s a stigma: the term back in the day was roach coaches. People had some thought that a food truck was dirtier than a restaurant — I don’t know why.”

Only four food trucks in the three localities received at least one priority violation last year.

” Fish Food by Uncle Russ in James City County was inspected twice last year and received one priority violation.

” Jabellz Latin Caribbean in Williamsburg was inspected three times last year and received three priority violations, one priority foundation and three core violations.

” Prost Food Truck in Williamsburg was inspected once and received one priority violation.

” Tribe Truck in Williamsburg was inspected once and received one priority violation.

But operating regulations in different localities is where it gets tricky, according to Sileno.

Managing food trucks

Restaurants in the City of Williamsburg exerted some pushback on having food trucks operate within city limits. Over the years, regulations have relaxed to allow trucks to cook and serve food.

Food trucks in Williamsburg are allowed to operate at High Street, downtown, midtown, Riverside and Colonial Williamsburg’s upcoming Palace Farms venue at 100 Visitor Center Drive. They also can park in residential areas up to twice a year, according to city regulations.

With a special-use permit, trucks can park on public property for special events.

In July, Virginia law changed to allow food trucks to pay business, professional and occupational license taxes only in the first jurisdiction where it’s registered for its first two years of operation.

Mobile Food Establishment Permits are issued by the state health department and are renewed annually. But the state left most food truck operating policy up to localities.

Localities may require food trucks to apply for a business license where they operate, according to the City of Williamsburg. And a business license may require an approved inspection by the fire department in any given locality.

James City County Fire Marshal Kenny Driscoll said several systems on food trucks are the same as those in restaurants. He checks for third-party certified fire suppression systems, appropriate fire extinguishers and easy exits.

Sileno said the health and fire department looks at their hood, all tags, temperatures of the foods and refrigeration.
Sileno said the health and fire department looks at their hood, all tags, temperatures of the foods and refrigeration.

“What they need for zoning is a fire department approval so we either approve it or don’t approve it,” Driscoll said. “Someone may come by my office to get their truck inspected and they don’t have one of these systems or they don’t have the necessary third party inspection and we just tell them that we won’t approve them until they get that done.”

In Williamsburg, a fire department inspection is required before trucks can be issued a business license. Trucks also must be inspected by the fire department each day they operate within the city.

“The restrictions are that you have to be inspected every single time by the fire marshal. Even if we cooked in the city of Williamsburg two days in one week, we were inspected every single time. It’s kind of weird,” Sileno said.

“Is it a headache? Not really, … we know them by now and … they just check for the same exact stuff that they literally just approved two days ago.”

Sileno said his truck is plugged in 24/7, so the refrigerators are always running. The two refrigeration systems are always packed to the max, he said, and can store maybe four or five days worth of produce.

“Essentially it is a mobile restaurant,” Sileno said. “You’re in a different spot every single night, so you have to learn, OK where are the dumpsters at this place and that place? Everything changes every day, so I would say that is kind of the only difference, but what we’re doing is the same.”

As far as unique food-related regulations, Sileno said he is required to attach his barbecue smoker to the truck.

“So essentially I had a hitch welded to the back of it for that reason only and I asked the (health) department what’s the difference if my cooker is next to my food truck versus attached to it. The food is still the same nothing changes. But that’s one of the laws,” Sileno said.

“I guess they want to make sure all the meat is being prepped in the food truck and going into the smoker, which makes sense, but it doesn’t make it easy for me logistically.”

Overall, Sileno said the food and safety regulations are fair and reasonable, and he understands it’s a changing time for food trucks. But Matchsticks BBQ Co. will experience the nuances of a brick-and-mortar restaurant when they open their own this winter.

“If I put myself in the perspective of the people making the laws, I would probably say that they are fair because it is new. You want to make sure that your I’s are dotted and your T’s are crossed,” Sileno said. “The last thing you want is, ‘we’ve got this awesome new thing happening in town but we’re not regulating it like we should and now a bunch of people are getting sick, right?'”

Want to know more?

The Virginia Department of Health maintains a database for the public to look up state health and safety records. You can look up inspection information for food trucks online at healthspace.com.

Read The Virginia Gazette’s report on brick-and-mortar restaurant inspections earlier this year at vagazette.com.