Janet Nguyen’s husband’s restaurant gets busted by the O.C. Health Department again

You might not want to eat at the Lee’s Sandwiches in Stanton…

Remember when Supervisor Janet Nguyen voted against letter grade health ratings for Orange County restaurants?  We busted her for not revealing the fact that her husband, Tom Bonikowski, owns a Lee’s Sandwiches franchise in Stanton that has been busted repeatedly by the Orange County Health Department.

The O.C. Register picked up the story and found out that Bonikowski’s partner at that Lee’s franchise is Nguyen’s Chief of Staff, Andrew Do.

I then found out that Nguyen had taken over twenty thousand dollars in campaign contributions from restaurant owners who have racked up multiple health violations, including the Azteca Restaurant in Garden Grove, where Nguyen likes to drink beer with her remaining supporters.  Click here to see their latest violations, which occurred in April of this year.

Periodically I check in with the O.C. Health Department to see if Bonikowski has cleaned up his act.  Well, he hasn’t.  He got busted again this year, in March.  Check out these violations:

  • Last Report Unavailable/No Person In Charge (PIC)
  • Improper Holding Temperatures of PHF
  • Unsanitary Equipment/Utensil/Linen/Plumbing
  • Inappropriate Sanitizer Level/ Lack of Test Strips
  • Unapproved Pesticides/Chemicals/Labeling
  • Inadequate Hygiene (Hair/Clothing/Eating/Drinking)
  • Lack of/Unsanitary/Condition Walls/Floors/Ceilings
  • Water Temp (100F-119F)/Wash Temp <100F/Cross Con
  • Evidence of Vermin Activity/Presence of Animals
  • Lack of/Improper Handwashing/Handwashing Sup.
  • Lack of/ImproperJanitorial Facilities or Liq Waste

Wow.  It is hard to believe that Bonikowski works in food safety, for Sodexo.  I believe he is assigned to their cafetaria at Cal State Fullerton.

Nguyen pulled strings to get Bonikowski appointed to the Garden Grove Planning Commission, where he presumably votes on matters involving new restaurants. 

If we had a letter grade system, what grade would Bonikowski’s restaurant have by now?  I am guessing it would be a “C!”

Click here to read the full report from the Orange County Health Department.

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