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The department of health found the gumbo was cooked off-site, cooled down, stuffed into non-food-grade orange buckets and then hauled off to a freezer at an unlicensed spot, according to the health department report obtained by KPRC 2 News. The food was then reportedly transported to a refrigerated trailer and thawed before being served.
The report also says Mama Tina’s didn’t keep temperature logs showing the cooling or storing times of the gumbo and that the inspector “observed bags of frozen shrimp and crab with a label that stated ‘keep frozen.'” Additionally, the department reported the food source used after the first day of the rodeo was not listed on the approved permit application and that food prepared more than 24 hours prior to serving was not dated.
Luckily, this was a fairly easy fix — the department says the pop-up’s operators were cooperative … and inspectors educated them on rapid cooling and thawing methods and date-marking instructions. Operators reportedly agreed to no longer prepare food off-site and also switched to a freezer trailer from a refrigerated one.
The closure of the restaurant was a minimal blip for Mama Tina’s Gumbo, who was cleared to open the next day. They were scheduled to serve at the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo through March 22.
TMZ has contacted the Houston Health Department for more information.
