NEWTON COUNTY, Ga. — Covington mayor Ronnie Johnston is proud to show off the restaurant he, his wife and two partners opened in January. But he is not proud of the inspection score Mystic Grill received on March 20 -- a 61, which is failing.
"It was very disappointing, very disappointing," Johnston said.
Some of the violations included observed employee handwashing after handling raw meats without the use of hand soap. Also, several bags of pasta, cooked bacon and cheeses were observed without any date labels. Inspectors also observed an employee grabbing raw steak with gloved hands and then grab raw chicken.
Johnston said he put his trust in the chef to run the kitchen properly.
"We had pretty much given that chef everything he needs to be successful and unfortunately it was not being run like we thought in all aspects," Johnston said.
Johnston has gotten rid of that chef and is using a consultant chef while looking for a replacement. He said he also made sure the staff got more training.
The restaurant was re-inspected on March 28. That's when they received an 85, which is a B.
The mayor said he wants the new venture to boost the city.
"We decided this would be a great way to give back to the community because we are a community that is on the verge of exploding in many ways economically," Johnston said.
The mayor and his partners are optimistic they're going to get a very high score next inspection.
WSBTV
