DETROIT (WWJ) Church’s Famous Fried Chicken on Seven Mile at Conant was slapped with several violations by the Detroit Health Department, and temporarily shut down.
Customers originally complained that they were served spoiled food, launching an investigation into questionable practices. After looking into it further on Thursday, the Health Department found seven cases of chicken that had expired about a week ago.
“Inspectors also observed the expired chicken cooking in several fryers and found chicken with appearance and odor indicative of spoilage,” a Health Advisory stated.
That wasn’t all the Detroit Health Department said they uncovered. An employee was caught disregarding the expired chicken while wearing the same gloves he or she used to prepare the food. He or she was also caught using the same batter and flour mixture for both the fresh and rotten chicken.
The health inspectors also noticed dirty fryers, raw chicken thawing in standing water; and a rusty and broken walk-in cooler with a missing floor tile.
The Detroit Health Department told WWJ the employees threw away the expired chicken and cleaned up with bleach while investigators were on site. The restaurant voluntarily shut down for the time being. Another investigation will be conducted after reopening.
Contaminated and spoiled food can cause food poisoning. The most common symptoms are nausea, vomiting, and diarrhea. They most commonly appear within 1 to 4 hours of eating.
If you are experiencing any serious symptoms, the Health Department urges you to contact your physician. If you ate at this location, please contact the Detroit Health Department at 313-876-4000 or go to the DHD website at https://www.detroitmi.gov/health.