A Dover buffet restaurant was shut down by the state health department in late December after an inspector found a roach infestation throughout the establishment and "extremely gross, unsanitary conditions."

The state visited King Buffet at 293 N. Dupont Highway on Dec. 19 after a complaint about roaches on plates, in some food and along the buffet line. An inspector wrote in a report that the complaint was valid.

A litany of health code violations at King Buffet also included the ice machine being "full of mold," mold on walls and ceilings of a walk-in, a meat slicer "caked" with food debris and employees not wearing gloves or washing hands when preparing food.

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The Division of Public Health, which has now deemed the restaurant a high-risk establishment, allowed it to reopen on Dec. 26 after a thorough cleaning and a promise of weekly visits from a pest management for the next three months.

The owner declined to comment for this story.

During the initial inspection, a state official observed "numerous pieces of utensils contaminated with food debris/mold" and the plumbing in disrepair.

Bulk containers had "caked on" food debris and there were no date markings in the walk-in freezer or on the cooking line. There was also a "fermented smell" in one area of the restaurant, according to the report.

The inspector confirmed the two complaints made about roaches at the restaurant. The official reported seeing baby and adult roaches throughout the establishment.

Dead roaches were seen in the kitchen, the storage area, under tables in the dining room and in and above the buffet steam tables. Live roaches were observed behind an ice cream cooler, in light shields in the kitchen above a soda machine and in cracks in wood in a storage area.

The inspector also wrote in the report to not "store fly traps over food prep area or ware washing area." The trash areas also were in "complete disrepair" and the staff was eating and drinking in the prep area, the report said.

In order to reopen, the inspector required the business to have a pest management company spray the eatery, clean the ice machines, throw away all the food, and fix plumbing issues.

King Buffet will be subject to reinspections every three to four months until it is downgraded by the state health department to a medium risk establishment.

In 2018, at least 48 Delaware food establishments were forced to temporarily close for various health code violations. Often, it was for "gross, unsanitary conditions," according to reports.

Gooey Donuts in Milton and Tutto Fresco, a longtime Italian restaurant in Penny Hill, both closed permanently two months after failing health inspections.

The Division of Public Health, which oversees the safety and cleanliness of 4,000 Delaware businesses, had not been posting new health inspections online since May 2017.

Officials said they were not updating the public site because its antiquated system was being revamped. At first, officials expected to unveil a modernized system by the end of the year. Now, the target month is February 2019.

The only way the public has been able to read recent food establishment inspection reports has been by requesting them through the state’s Division of Health and Social Services or at a restaurant.

A restaurant, by law, is required to give customers its most recent inspection report, upon request.

In early December 2018, the department updated its current inspection website, though officials say it is a "transitional solution."

Customers who want to anonymously report unsanitary conditions at Delaware food establishments and restaurants can call a consumer complaint hotline at 302-744-4736. Inspectors follow up on complaints.

Contact Meredith Newman at (302) 324-2386 or mnewman@delawareonline.com and on Twitter @MereNewman. Contact Patricia Talorico at (302) 324-2861 or ptalorico@delawareonline.com and on Twitter @pattytalorico.

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