Hunan Chinese Restaurant closed due to 'health and safety hazards'

Matthew Stolle, Post-Bulletin, Rochester, Minn.
·2 min read

Jan. 10—ROCHESTER — Hunan Chinese Restaurant in Soldier Field Plaza along South Broadway — an eatery that has been in operation in the Med City for three decades — has been closed since the beginning of the year under an order from Olmsted County Public Health for unspecified "health and safety hazards."

Public notices taped to the front door and signed by Olmsted County Associate Director of Public Health Mike Melius state the eatery was closed for violations of state and local public health rules.

"This establishment is closed due to public health and safety hazards including, but not limited to: Violations of Minnesota Food Rules 4626," the public health notice states.

The particular chapter of the Minnesota Food Code concerns the minimum design, installation, construction and maintenance requirements that all food establishments in the state operate under.

A statement by Olmsted County Public Health suggests the restaurant, located at 844 S. Broadway, has been under the county's radar for some time.

Emma Dierks, a communication specialist for Olmsted County Public Health, said the restaurant had not applied for a license renewal as of Jan. 1, and due to "recurring failures to actively manage food safety risk," Olmsted County Public Health Services chose not to renew the restaurant's food and beverage license.

"Final enforcement measures were not implemented due to the fact that food safety risks were not effectively managed and the license renewal was not completed by the establishment," Dierks said in her statement. "To that end, the food and beverage license for this establishment was not renewed for 2022."

Officials say the restaurant has been cited multiple times for violations over time and had its license suspended on two occasions last year. After both occasions, following work with a food safety consultant and the county, the restaurant was allowed to re-open again. But the restaurant was inspected frequently due to its history of noncompliance.

"After multiple inspections and re-inspections of the establishment, the decision was made to deny any further license renewal requests under the current ownership due to ineffective food safety management," Dierks said in an email.

The restaurant had operated at Soldiers Field Plaza since the early 1990s, according to an article in the Rochester Post Bulletin. It was owned by Samath Ung through the early 2000s, but is now owned by Somnang John Heng.

Calls to the restaurant were not returned.