Wachs Urges Crackdown on Dirty Restaurants
Dismayed by television reports of unsanitary practices in restaurants, Los Angeles City Councilman Joel Wachs urged his colleagues Friday to ask the county to toughen its health regulations and crack down more swiftly on violators.
“You’ve got to be sure that the moment the cameras go away, you don’t go back to business as usual,” said Wachs, who introduced a motion urging the county to demand better training for restaurant employees and give more power to its own health inspectors. “I just don’t want the system go to back to the way it’s been.”
His proposal came on the heels of a hidden-camera investigation by KCBS-TV showing footage of unclean conditions at restaurants, including several prominent eateries.
Wachs was also reacting to the daylong, county-ordered shutdown Wednesday of one of the San Fernando Valley’s most popular establishments, Jerry’s Famous Deli in Studio City, which is in Wachs’ council district but which was not featured in the TV investigation.
His motion will be taken up by the council Tuesday.
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