SAN DIEGO (KGTV) — Buona Forchetta reopened late Thursday afternoon after being ordered to close Tuesday following a routine county inspection that revealed multiple health violations, including a cockroach infestation.
According to county inspection records, the violations were listed as follows: proper handwashing facilities, floors, walls, and ceilings out of compliance, and vermin. The county specified the restaurant had a cockroach infestation.
On Thursday, before the restaurant reopened, customers who arrived for lunch were turned away without explanation. Friends Barbara Potts and Robin McBride, regular patrons of the restaurant, were shocked to learn about the closure.
"They make a good crust, and I'm astounded," said Barbara Potts about the restaurant's quality before learning of the violations.
McBride said she walked into the restaurant and had the following exchange with the staff: "I said Are you closed and they said We're closed and I said Forever? And they said, oh maybe dinner or something."
Restaurant employees had declined to comment during the closure, only confirming they were closed. Staff members were observed cleaning and moving boxes throughout the day.
"I'm appalled, oh my goodness, I've eaten there so much," said Potts.
This Buona Forchetta location is the exact location that was raided by Immigration and Customs Enforcement earlier this year. During that operation, four undocumented workers were arrested as part of an immigration enforcement action. The community expressed outrage, with residents confronting federal agents during the raid.
The restaurant owner was accused of knowingly employing undocumented immigrants and people not authorized to work in the United States.
According to the county, the restaurant reopened late Thursday afternoon.
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