Health department issues consumer alert for popular, award-winning restaurant

PITTSBURGH — UPDATE 5:55 p.m.

Caliente Pizza and Draft House has been hit with a consumer alert.

Inspectors from the Allegheny County Health Department returned there Thursday after Channel 11's report Wednesday, prompting them to issue a yellow consumer alert.

According to inspectors, during their visit they found 11 cockroaches in a handful of areas, including the main bar and back kitchen prep area.

The health department's report indicated that the owner was present during Thursday's inspection and that the restaurant is committed to correcting all of the violations that led to the consumer alert.

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ORIGINAL STORY:

An award-winning restaurant in Bloomfield is responding to a video that shows cockroaches in its kitchen.

The man who recorded it told Channel 11 he used to work at the Caliente Pizza and Draft House.

The ex-employee, who wanted to remain anonymous, told Channel 11 he quit because he wasn't getting enough hours and because of the working conditions in the kitchen.

Caliente's management sent us the following statement when we contacted them for a response:

"We learned of this video only through the news media. We have confirmed that this video came from a disgruntled former employee. We have a good record with the Health Department and passed our most recent inspection. We want to assure our customers that serving safe, fresh food is our utmost priority. We will be investigating this situation to ensure that we meet our commitment to our customers."

Channel 11 did some digging and found that the restaurant did pass its latest inspection, but it did have low-risk violations for mouse droppings and dead cockroaches.

According to the Allegheny County Health Department, they will investigate if they receive a formal complaint, which hasn't happened.

Health officials were at the restaurant in August for a routine check and even though there were pest management and cleaning violations noted on the report, the restaurant did pass inspection.

Cox Media Group