Management at The Pantry restaurant in north central Richmond said health and sanitation problems that resulted in a one-day closure last week have been fixed.
But a former employee said that would not be enough to convince her to eat there.
Megan Osborn told the News this week she had been concerned about the level of cleanliness at The Pantry location attached to the the Travelodge Hotel at 3051 St. Edwards Drive.
Osborn, who was waitressing there and is two months pregnant with her second child, said she was specifically concerned about the presence of mice droppings around the restaurant.
She said there were traces of the rodents in and around the food storage areas, and on the salad bar station - most notably, dried mice urine on food preparation surfaces.
Osborn, who was let go last week by restaurant management just prior to completing her three-month probationary period, said she was upset management asked her to conduct some of the cleanup duties as a result of the rodent problem instead of using a professional sanitization crew.
She questioned management's decision in light of the fact she was pregnant and was told they could change her duties at any time.
"I said, 'Yes you can. But you have to remember I am pregnant and you wouldn't want your daughters cleaning up mice poo or be around mice poo if they were pregnant.' And then they let me go."
According to the Vancouver Coastal Health's Inspection Reports website, The Pantry location underwent a routine inspection May 7 that resulted in the closure order.
On the list of observations was one for inadequate insect/rodent control. Officials stated the restaurant was heavily contaminated with mice dropping in areas of the dry food storage rooms, on dishware, on food contact surfaces, food containers, in uncovered food products, and in the salad bar area.
Fruit flies were also observed coming from the floor drain next to the dish-washing machine, and the exterior wall surface was damaged and may have been an entry site for rodents.
Jahan Mizra, manager of The Pantry location said in a telephone interview that a professional sanitation and pest control firm was hired to clean up the premises and that once all the work was completed Vancouver Coastal Health officials inspected the restaurant a day later and gave them the okay to reopen May 8.
Mizra added that in the close to eight years he has run the business, this was the first time an inspection had resulted in a closure.
"We've never had issues before, and we were asked to do certain things to clean up. They've been done, and done properly," Mizra said.
A check of the Vancouver Coastal Health website shows the restaurant has been subjected to other inspections that returned a list of observations including improper cleaning and sanitizing of equipment and utensils. All of those matters were addressed and checked by subsequent re-inspections.
Frequent inspections are also done by The Pantry's parent company.
"They are usually done on a quarterly basis," said Peter Dhillon, executive vice president of operations and partner in White Rock-based RAAMP Hospitality Brands Inc. whose restaurant holdings include The Pantry Restaurants, Mr. Mikes Steakhouse Casual, and Rockwell's Grill & Bar.
Dhillon, who was on hand when the News visited The Pantry Tuesday, said that for the St. Edwards Drive location the frequency of checks was being stepped up to every two weeks in light of the current health inspections. "We want to ensure there are no concerns for our guests. Now, everything is clean and ready to go."
