Restaurant Inspections: Aroma Indian Cuisine and Z Pizza

From March 9-19, the state health department inspected a few restaurants in the Lorton area. For prior restaurant inspection reports, click here.

In Virginia, restaurant inspection reports aren't quite as simple as getting a letter grade or an easy-to-see number rating to post in the front window.

That said, we all want to know how our favorite restaurants stack up on cleanliness and sanitation. Inspectors grade restaurants based on critical and non-critical violations.

A "critical violation" is one that "poses a direct or immediate threat to the safety of the food being served." Non-critical violations are generally related to cleaning or maintenance.

"Ideally, an operation would have no critical violations, or none which are not corrected immediately and not repeated. In our experience, it is unrealistic to expect that a complex, full-service food operation can routinely avoid any violations," according to Virginia Department of Health's website.

The site continues: "Keep in mind that any inspection report is a 'snapshot' of the day and time of the inspection. On any given day, a restaurant could have fewer or more violations than noted in the report. An inspection conducted on any given day may not be representative of the overall, long-term cleanliness of an establishment."

Below, find the latest restaurant inspection from the Virginia Department of Health. These inspections reflect visits from inspectors during the last few weeks. Some of the violations were corrected immediately during the recent inspections.

The full reports can be accessed on the health department's website.

Aroma Indian Cuisine

9429 Lorton Market St

Date of inspection: March 14

Critical (corrected during inspection): Some refrigerated, ready-to-eat, potentially hazardous food that is prepared on site is not used or discarded within 24 hours of preparation and was not observed to be date marked.

Non-critical: Absence of no-smoking signs or international no-smoking signs in non-smoking area.

Z Pizza

9451 Lorton Market Street

Date of inspection: March 14

Critical (corrected during inspection): Observed the following ready-to-eat, potentially hazardous food being held for more than seven days at 41 degrees: meatballs inside of Victory prep cooler #1.

Non-critical: The nonfood-contact surfaces of the following equipment were observed soiled with an accumulation of dust, dirt, food residue, and/or other debris: container that clean utensils are stored in located by the 3vat sink.

Non-critical: The sink basin at the handsink located by the ovens is slow to drain.

Non-critical: Absence of no-smoking signs or international no-smoking signs in non-smoking area.