Two food booths operating at the Canadian National Exhibition have been closed due to food safety infractions.
The Bourbon Street Grill and Bao 360 Shanghai Express were closed Tuesday by Toronto Public Health and CNE officials.
Jim Chan, head of Toronto Public Health's DineSafe program, told reporters that the Bourbon Grill initially received a conditional pass by food safety inspectors, but following a re-inspection, was shut down due to infractions related to sanitation and food handling and storage.
Chan said there were specific issues concerning the handling and temperature control of meat, including chicken.
"The temperature continued to be an issue," he said.
Because the two booths share a kitchen, they were both closed, he said.
He added that the closures did not stem from any related patron illness, but from a pro-active inspection.
The booths, which were both operated by Innovated Restaurant Group, were also found to be breaching CNE contract rules and regulations, according to a statement released by the CNE Wednesday afternoon.
Both booths will be closed for the remainder of the fair.
The closures came on re-opening day for Epic Burgers & Waffles – the vendor of the ‘Cronut’ burger with a maple bacon jam topping which was linked to dozens of cases of foodborne illness.
CNE general manager David Bednar said the closures are "exceptional" and noted that typically every other year one CNE food booth will be closed due to food safety violations.
He maintained that food at the CNE was safe to eat.
