11 inspections in 3 years is because they keep failing them. It would be completely negligent of the city to cite them for major violations then not follow up. I'm mostly concerned that they could continue to fail inspections after a closure and be allowed to remain open.

I like the family and the restaurant but it seems like they need to get priorities in order. Good food that makes people sick is not good food. Particularly not in an almost new space that was built out specifically for them. Fail once--mea culpa--fail over and over and there is a problem. For the right perspective on restaurant cleanliness, have a look at this article (which is wonderful, by the way, for many reasons.) I, too, will return to Sun Wah but I can't say it will ever be without reservation, until they prove that keeping the restaurant clean matters to them. Because it should.

boudreaulicious wrote:11 inspections in 3 years is because they keep failing them. It would be completely negligent of the city to cite them for major violations then not follow up. I'm mostly concerned that they could continue to fail inspections after a closure and be allowed to remain open.

I like the family and the restaurant but it seems like they need to get priorities in order. Good food that makes people sick is not good food. Particularly not in an almost new space that was built out specifically for them. Fail once--mea culpa--fail over and over and there is a problem. For the right perspective on restaurant cleanliness, have a look at this article (which is wonderful, by the way, for many reasons.) I, too, will return to Sun Wah but I can't say it will ever be without reservation, until they prove that keeping the restaurant clean matters to them. Because it should.

Also, this is the 2nd time they've been shut down:

The restaurant was also shuttered in 2010 for health code violations.

Here's a link to their 2010 shuttering: http://chicago.eater.com/archives/2010/ ... ection.php

Pretty gross.

Honestly, I'm done with the place for quite awhile (or forever). Going forward, I'll happily get my Chinese food fix from the Uptown Lao Sze Chuan.

Yes, I like the fact that LSC is right there as well, but they are two different styles of food, so I alternate between both places depending on my mood.

Wow, bad timing. I'm really torn, because nearly every restaurant would fail an inspection on the wrong day, and to date, the only place that has made either my wife or I sick to my knowledge was a Michelin starred fine dining establishment. (And they were jerks when we told them.) But lots of failed inspections is a bad scene. On one hand, it does make it look like the city is picking on them. On the other hand, the city is picking on them ... because they keep failing inspections! If I were cited several times and shut down once, I'd make cleaning things up a top priority. The fact that they apparently haven't is disturbing.

I think all any of us can do is make our own personal decision how this news affects our plans. I enjoyed my group's visit to Sun Wah a couple of years ago and have had the restaurant penciled-in as a destination for us with my out-of-town family when they visit us shortly after the first of the year. The question is not whether Sun Wah will have the current matter squared away by then; of course they will. The question is a matter of ongoing trust given the history with these incidents. My own personal comfort level concerning a return visit is that I would have to see a period of two years without any further infractions before I would consider it. I sincerely wish the restaurant success in achieving this goal. Others will feel more ready to visit sooner.

riddlemay wrote:I think all any of us can do is make our own personal decision how this news affects our plans. I enjoyed my group's visit to Sun Wah a couple of years ago and had the restaurant penciled-in as a destination for us with my out-of-town family when they visit us shortly after the first of the year. The question is not whether Sun Wah will have the current matter squared away by then; of course they will. The question is a matter of ongoing trust given the history with these incidents. My own personal comfort level concerning a return visit is that I would have to see a period of two years without any further infractions before I would consider it. I sincerely wish the restaurant success in achieving this goal. Others will feel more ready to visit sooner.

just curious how you came up with the length of 2 years for the "probation" period before you would return.

Me. I was there on Friday(after a 1+ year absence), and doubt I will be back for a while.. Dirty restaurants and alleged unsafe food safety practices get under my skin.

jimswside wrote:
just curious how you came up with the length of 2 years for the "probation" period before you would return.

It is a total gut call. I can't give you reasons other than to say that in this case it is the length of time my personal level of prudence dictates.

And I don't think of it as "probation." I think of it more in terms of what I'm willing to do.

riddlemay wrote:My own personal comfort level concerning a return visit is that I would have to see a period of two years without any further infractions before I would consider it.

Wouldn't it be most prudent to return the day that a restaurant reopens? At least you know it's spic and span then!

stevez wrote:Yes, I like the fact that LSC is right there as well, but they are two different styles of food, so I alternate between both places depending on my mood.

Very true. One style features explosive diarrhea and the other one doesn't.

I kid I kid.

Teresa wrote:

riddlemay wrote:My own personal comfort level concerning a return visit is that I would have to see a period of two years without any further infractions before I would consider it.

Wouldn't it be most prudent to return the day that a restaurant reopens? At least you know it's spic and span then!

Too right. Of course, I doubt laikom is setting foot in there any time soon, regardless of their level of cleanliness.

You know, relating directly to an earlier post of mine, if you can't trust a restaurant to be "vigilant" about common health code violations, how in the world can you expect it to be vigilant when it comes to allergies?

I'm shocked at some of the rationalizations here. "They didn't pay off the alderman." "They're being picked on by the city."

Ridiculous.

So the alderman planted roaches there because they weren't paid off? Please.

I've always enjoyed the food there but I must say, it never looked all that clean. Doubt I'll go back.

Wow, bad timing. I'm really torn, because nearly every restaurant would fail an inspection on the wrong day

Not even close. Being part of over 50 health inspections, I can't imagine what you would have to do to be shut down. Actually I could guess, critical violations that have been written over and over and not resolved. The only thing that makes health inspectors angry is when things don't get fixed. Otherwise, they're a pretty great group of city workers. They're way overworked, have a antiquated computer system they all hate and don't want to see a business fail. They do though want to see what they want fixed, get fixed.

Maybe I should have stressed that I imagine restaurants abound that would earn violation notices or whatever should inspectors pop in. Restaurants that are actually shut down are a rarer bunch, I suspect.

pizano345 wrote:

Wow, bad timing. I'm really torn, because nearly every restaurant would fail an inspection on the wrong day

Not even close. Being part of over 50 health inspections, I can't imagine what you would have to do to be shut down. Actually I could guess, critical violations that have been written over and over and not resolved. The only thing that makes health inspectors angry is when things don't get fixed. Otherwise, they're a pretty great group of city workers. They're way overworked, have a antiquated computer system they all hate and don't want to see a business fail. They do though want to see what they want fixed, get fixed.

I have been through dozens of health department inspections, infection control inspections, corporate inspections and HCFA inspections.

It is fairly easy to get shutdown BUT most of it centers around CERTAIN violations:

1) Refrigeration not at the proper temperature.
2) Food stored at an improper temperature.
3) Live vermin (rats, mice, and roaches) infestation.
4) Lack of proper hand washing sinks AND supplies.
5) Plumbing issues
6) AND MOST IMPORTANT *** repeat violations - because it indicates that you are not taking things seriously.

While inspections generally do take place during rush periods, I have never seen an inspector go bonkers on small items that were out of place during service.

I wish that Illinois would implement the same standards as Missouri and other states where a letter grade is posted on the windows of restaurants in PLAIN VIEW posted by the inspector. It gets the point across quickly.

boudreaulicious wrote:

Teresa wrote:

riddlemay wrote:My own personal comfort level concerning a return visit is that I would have to see a period of two years without any further infractions before I would consider it.

Wouldn't it be most prudent to return the day that a restaurant reopens? At least you know it's spic and span then!

Too right. Of course, I doubt laikom is setting foot in there any time soon, regardless of their level of cleanliness.

Sun Wah always brings my food out tepid or cold, so this whole thing is no surprise to me. I love tempting food poisoning, so I would go back if someone dragged me. Or maybe with someone who is friends with the owners, that way they might at least microwave my food before bringing it out.

laikom wrote: I love tempting food poisoning, so I would go back if someone dragged me. Or maybe with someone who is friends with the owners, that way they might at least microwave my food before bringing it out.

damn.... banner quote...

We have yet to hear from Kelly, I wonder what she has to say about this.

Hopefully, she's too busy to talk right now. I think getting re-opened and staying on the right side of the inspectors will say everything she'll want to say about this.

I wouldn't open my mouth at all if I were her, especially here... I'd let my food do the talking.

TCK wrote:I wouldn't open my mouth at all if I were her, especially here... I'd let my food do the talking.

Wise.

I'm no health inspector, but I've got to believe that if the food is still capable of conversing, it has not been cooked to the proper temperature...

Sun-Wah's food, though it's supposed to be silent, has always had some sounds associated with it: http://www.wbez.org/episode-segments/so ... -bar-b-que

ThaiBasil wrote:We have yet to hear from Kelly, I wonder what she has to say about this.

viewtopic.php?f=14&t=2086&start=660&sp=465457

From the article previously linked in that earlier post:

Cheng came to the door of the restaurant and briefly spoke with DNAinfo Chicago about the status of her popular business, which is known for rolling out and carving up roasted duck table-side for patrons.

"We have nothing to say other than the city inspectors are doing their job, and we just weren't vigilant enough," Cheng said.

danimalarkey wrote:

ThaiBasil wrote:We have yet to hear from Kelly, I wonder what she has to say about this.

http://lthforum.com/bb/viewtopic.php?f= ... &sp=465457

From the article previously linked in that earlier post:

Cheng came to the door of the restaurant and briefly spoke with DNAinfo Chicago about the status of her popular business, which is known for rolling out and carving up roasted duck table-side for patrons.

"We have nothing to say other than the city inspectors are doing their job, and we just weren't vigilant enough," Cheng said.

Sorry - I meant on this Forum; I know came here every once in a while

hello to all to our friends, fans, and foodies out there:

we are sorry to have been shut down by the city and made all of you anxious and worried on our part. we sincerely thank you all for your patronage and support all these years and especially over the last few days as we got through this shut down. having read some of the above posts, really, we have no comment. i wish that "reporter" had not published i said those things. i told him specifically i had no comment but he turned the "outburst" directed at him to stop pestering me and questioning me into comments for his little article so he can get printed. that more than anything makes me boil. yes, we were not on top of things. yes, the city was doing its job. no, we don't do this intentionally. as with all holidays, we get extremely busy. we were shorthanded this year as people took time off for the holidays and we've had several new hires that are still in training. one of the "unknown" reasons for our day off is to have time for cleaning. the city happened to visit when we didn't have a regular off day to get the full cleaning our kitchen needs. we have now done everything the city has asked and then some. according to our re-open report, we have a few minor repairs left. other than that, we are good to go. our goal has always been and always will be to serve great tasting, as authentic as possible, hong kong style barbecue and cantonese family style food. we hope to continue to do so long into the future. again, thanks to everyone for their support and patronage. we hope to see all of you again, whether shortly or in the future. quack quack!

kelly

Sunwahrestaurant


hello to all to our friends, fans, and foodies out there:

we are sorry to have been shut down by the city and made all of you anxious and worried on our part. we sincerely thank you all for your patronage and support all these years and especially over the last few days as we got through this shut down. having read some of the above posts, really, we have no comment. i wish that "reporter" had not published i said those things. i told him specifically i had no comment but he turned the "outburst" directed at him to stop pestering me and questioning me into comments for his little article so he can get printed. that more than anything makes me boil. yes, we were not on top of things. yes, the city was doing its job. no, we don't do this intentionally. as with all holidays, we get extremely busy. we were shorthanded this year as people took time off for the holidays and we've had several new hires that are still in training. one of the "unknown" reasons for our day off is to have time for cleaning. the city happened to visit when we didn't have a regular off day to get the full cleaning our kitchen needs. we have now done everything the city has asked and then some. according to our re-open report, we have a few minor repairs left. other than that, we are good to go. our goal has always been and always will be to serve great tasting, as authentic as possible, hong kong style barbecue and cantonese family style food. we hope to continue to do so long into the future. again, thanks to everyone for their support and patronage. we hope to see all of you again, whether shortly or in the future. quack quack!

kelly

Probably would have been best had Kelly not posted this. Blaming the "'reporter'" and his "...little article"? Really?

sunwahrestaurant wrote:hello to all to our friends, fans, and foodies out there:

we are sorry to have been shut down by the city and made all of you anxious and worried on our part. we sincerely thank you all for your patronage and support all these years and especially over the last few days as we got through this shut down. having read some of the above posts, really, we have no comment. i wish that "reporter" had not published i said those things. i told him specifically i had no comment but he turned the "outburst" directed at him to stop pestering me and questioning me into comments for his little article so he can get printed. that more than anything makes me boil. yes, we were not on top of things. yes, the city was doing its job. no, we don't do this intentionally. as with all holidays, we get extremely busy. we were shorthanded this year as people took time off for the holidays and we've had several new hires that are still in training. one of the "unknown" reasons for our day off is to have time for cleaning. the city happened to visit when we didn't have a regular off day to get the full cleaning our kitchen needs. we have now done everything the city has asked and then some. according to our re-open report, we have a few minor repairs left. other than that, we are good to go. our goal has always been and always will be to serve great tasting, as authentic as possible, hong kong style barbecue and cantonese family style food. we hope to continue to do so long into the future. again, thanks to everyone for their support and patronage. we hope to see all of you again, whether shortly or in the future. quack quack!

kelly

This pretty much seals the deal. I'm never eating at your restaurant again. You'd be hard pressed to write something that puts you (the owner) in a worse light in the aftermath of your 2nd shut down by the health dept.

PopcornMegaphone wrote:This pretty much seals the deal. I'm never eating at your restaurant again. You'd be hard pressed to write something that puts you (the owner) in a worse light in the aftermath of your 2nd shut down by the health dept.

+1

Too bad for you guys! I read that and I'm just fine with what Kelly posted. Sounded honest and sincere to me and I've met Kelly a few times and that sounds just like her. I can't wait to get back to Sun Wah.