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Update: According to inspection reports obtained by this news organization, an inspector shut down the Dutch Goose because during a routine inspection, they “observed several live cockroaches at line prep area, near the bar area and the back food preparation area.” On July 18, an inspector visited the restaurant again and continued to find live cockroaches. They allowed it to re-open on July 19 after the owner provided records that show the Dutch Goose contracted a pest control company. That day, the inspector “observed one dead cockroach in back of food prep area” and instructed restaurant staff to remove it and sanitize the area with a disinfectant before the restaurant reopened.
The Dutch Goose in Menlo Park was forced to close on July 17 by San Mateo County Environmental Health Services due to the presence of “vermin, rodents, insects, birds or animals,” according to the department’s website.
An inspector with the department cleared the restaurant, located at 3567 Alameda de las Pulgas, to open on the morning of July 19 and it was back open that day.
The Dutch Goose was not immediately available for comment.
This news organization sent a Public Records Act request to Environmental Health Services but did not receive a response in time for publication.
The Dutch Goose passed all inspections from 2013-2021, according to publicly available inspection data.
The Dutch Goose has been a staple of the area since 1966. The restaurant is known for being the location of the first public video game and allowing customers to drop peanut shells on the floor.
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There are places where one goes to eat that one can expect the very highest standards of cleanliness and a rodent-free experience.
The Dutch Goose has never been one of those places. It’s for cheap edible food and a free-for-all atmosphere.
Thank you for reporting on this – and for your public records request. I’ll be curious if there were inspections since 2021. It’s been my experience in working with the County as a volunteer that they are WAY behind in what are supposed to be routine annual inspections. Also in my experience, they don’t often issue violations; they use inspections to “educate”, so it must have been pretty bad.
Please continue to dig into this. The County Dept of Public Health / Environmental Health is responsible for annual inspections all over the county.