Our View: We publish records like Cleveland County health code violations as a public service to better educate our readers, not to tear down the institutions implicated in the records.
Would the knowledge that your favorite Campus Corner restaurant violated the Cleveland County health code change your mind about eating at that establishment? We wager it wouldn’t change your mind because many of the offenses are as minor as improper food storage and unsanitary equipment.
All that to say that our report on Campus Corner restaurants that have violated Cleveland County health codes is not intended to harm these businesses or dissuade you from eating at them. Rather, we see it as part of our duty to publish relevant information to better educate our readers. Especially when the information is obscure as health code records because, really, who reads those for fun?
So let us help you make the most informed decision possible about where and how to spend your money when you go out for a bite to eat. The majority of the reported violations are minor, such as dried food in storage containers and improper hand washing, which aren’t cause for uproar because the violations aren’t worthy of shutting the restaurants down. And the biggest offenders on the list might surprise you because they are also some of the most popular restaurants in Norman, such as Hideaway Pizza, Fuzzy’s Taco Shop and The Mont. In fact, even after reviewing the health code violations, many of us editors were talking about going to eat at some of the offending restaurants the same day.
When we publish articles explaining health code violations or other institutional missteps it isn’t because we want to hurt business or humiliate the organization. Instead we are giving a voice to the data and transforming otherwise boring records into meaningful, useful information. It’s our job to provide the public service of reporting the facts to educate the public, and information about local restaurants falls into that purview.
Just because your beloved Campus Corner restaurant might not be great at washing its dishes doesn’t mean you won’t eat there anymore, but you do deserve to know what you’re getting yourself into by choosing to dine at that establishment. Restaurants take on the responsibility of serving food to the general public, food that must be prepared according to stringent guidelines. So while it might not seem like a big deal that a dead moth was found in the ice machine at Diamond Dawgs, it’s important to hold these establishments to a higher standard and let people know of health code violations so they can make smart future dining decisions.
Although there have been violations at our favorite Campus Corner restaurants, there have been fewer offenses than last year. In fact, the 743 reported health code violations this year is less than half as many as the 1508 reported offenses last year, The Daily reported. So don’t condemn popular Campus Corner eateries just yet. Even though your meal might not have been prepared with 100 percent adherence to health code standards, it doesn’t mean it’s any less delicious or less safe than eating food prepared in your own less-than-sparkling kitchen.
