Sqirl, the popular Virgil Village brunch spot owned by Jessica Koslow, was mistreated this weekend over accusations that the restaurant operated in unsafe and unhealthy working conditions for years. Among the accusations: the jams were not stored properly, which allowed the growth of severe mold; the restaurant had rodent infestations that were not addressed in a timely manner; and the facility housed a kitchen space without permission that was intentionally hidden from health inspectors.
The allegations were compiled on Instagram by Joe Rosenthal, a Minnesota-based food blogger and mathematician whose work seeks to investigate “troubled figures in the food industry.” He said he became aware of possible concerns at Sqirl last week after seeing a tweet linking to an Instagram account, @sqirltruth.
Rosenthal said he had contacted more than a dozen current and former Sqirl employees since Saturday, all of whom, he said, shared similar accounts of improper food storage and safety practices at the restaurant; Screenshots of those alleged conversations were posted to his Instagram account. (The Times interviewed some of the same employees, who confirmed Rosenthal’s account.)
Most prominent among the allegations was the claim that Koslow had ordered employees to scrape mold layers off the chilled jam cubes, serving the rest to guests at the restaurant or packing it in jars for retail distribution. Rosenthal also posted an image, allegedly sent by a Sqirl employee, of what appears to be a jam-filled plastic bucket covered in a thick layer of mold that had been partially scraped with rubber spatulas.
Sqirl, which opened in 2012, has grown to be one of the most recognized restaurants in Los Angeles in the past decade, garnering praise from critics and publications across the country and developing significant following for its stylized comfort food brand, They include ricotta toast with jam. Long lines outside his East Hollywood store were a regular occurrence.
Koslow has been nominated for a James Beard Award for her work at Sqirl and was in the first Master Food Preserver cohort in Los Angeles, a program led by the University of California Cooperative Extension program. She is slated to release her second cookbook, covering the topic of jam making, on July 21.
In response to the allegations, the restaurant released a statement on its Twitter and Instagram accounts on Sunday confirming that “mold on the surface sometimes develops” of its bulk jams due to its low sugar content, similar to “types mold that develop in some cheese, sausages, dried meat and many other canned foods. “
On Monday, Koslow issued a statement to The Times. apologizing to customers and employees.
“All of the retail jam we’ve sold, that is, the jam in jars they buy from us and in stores, is pasteurized and canned using the“ hot pack ”method that makes mold growth basically impossible. That same recipe is used in the restaurant, but because the jam is low in sugar and we don’t use any chemicals or preservatives, there were occasional cases where mold developed on the surface.
“When this happened, we would eliminate it. To guide this practice, I relied on research and guidance from health experts and, to the best of my knowledge, I thought it was safe.
“Like the same jam that I serve to my clients, family and friends and I would never knowingly serve any food that puts their health at risk. I realize I was wrong and I’m sorry, “he said.
The restaurant’s social media statement said the process for dealing with mold growth was done “under the guidance of conservation mentors and experts like Dr. Patrick Hickey, by ruling out jam several inches below mold, or ruling out containers entirely. “
Hickey, an Edinburgh-based mycologist and mushroom expert, was quoted in a 2014 BBC story stating that moldy jam was safe to consume once mold had been removed and the jam had been consumed immediately. However, contacted by phone, Hickey explained that this practice was only acceptable in very limited quantities. “A small amount of mold in the jam in your refrigerator probably won’t hurt you,” he said, but added that producing large amounts of jam in a commercial kitchen is a different problem. He also said that he was not familiar with Sqirl or Koslow and that he had never spoken to anyone in the restaurant about mold management.
The risk of food-borne toxins, which some molds produce, is much higher with substances in gel or porous form, such as jam, compared to dry-aged meats or cheeses, Hickey said. “My recent research shows that spores can grow quite large in a gel as they disperse,” he added. “As mold will continue to spread and create a spore powder, it becomes a major concern for those who are repeatedly exposed to that environment.”
In its official guidelines on mold growth in food, the USDA suggests that any moldy jam or jelly should be discarded: “Mold could be producing a mycotoxin. Microbiologists recommend not removing mold and using the remaining seasoning. “
Gelyn Montanino, a former Sqirl pastry chef, said moldy jam cubes continued to be a problem at the restaurant when she was hired in August 2019. “I was immediately upset,” she recalled. “I asked about it and no one had a real reason why this was so. Almost all cubes would have a thick layer of mold on top with no lids or wrap. I have witnessed cooks scraping the pan and putting the jam in their pans for the line. “
The former employees also told The Times that improper storage of jams was not the only problem regarding food and employee safety in Sqirl.
Sasha Piligian, a former pastry chef who worked at Sqirl from 2016 to 2019, referred to the “mold story” in an email interview and also mentioned the “illegal kitchen we all worked on for years, hidden from the health department “
Elise Fields, a baker at Sqirl from 2018 to 2019, said she could confirm the allegations that Rosenthal released.
“I spent most of the time working in that kitchen, which was cramped, infested, unsafe, and unventilated,” said Fields. “During a surprise health inspection, I and another cook once had to hide and lock up during the inspection, which took over an hour to complete. … The entire prep area, dry storage, locker rooms, storage areas and basically all aspects of the non-cafe area were horrendous and disorganized and easily the least hospitable environment I have worked in “
Before a major Sqirl remodel in 2018, very little about the restaurant was “in line with the code,” according to a former manager who asked to remain anonymous due to concerns about future employment and who also said the restaurant had a vermin problem.
However, Koslow said Sqirl “does not have and has not had a rat problem.” He also addressed complaints about a “secondary kitchen space” that was acquired in 2013.
“Around that time, our secondary kitchen fell off the radar of the Health Department, even though Sqirl’s main kitchen received regular inspections,” he said. Embarrassingly, I took advantage of her supervision and did my best as we used Sqirl’s main kitchen for all of our restaurant orders, including jam, and we used the secondary kitchen primarily for baking and preparing food. We were at risk of being shut down, but in our industry, this is common and just focused on keeping the lights on and keeping my team on staff. “
According to records from the Los Angeles County Department of Health, Sqirl has been inspected by officials at least 15 times since September 2015 and has never received a health rating below 91.0, constituting an “A” rating. ” An email was not immediately returned to the county Health Department regarding the allegations against Sqirl.
Koslow said he is changing the jam program by implementing a pasteurized “hot pack” method: The same technique he said was previously used for retail products, for all jams used in the restaurant. He also said he would send samples of the jam to an independent laboratory, Certified Laboratories Inc., for analysis and to ensure its safety and longevity.
“I know that I have lost the trust of our loyal customers, partners and subscribers and I hope that my sincere regret and these changes demonstrate that I have learned from my mistake and are enough to earn them a second chance,” said Koslow.
As news of the allegations spread, some retailers, including Now Serving and DTLA Cheese, recalled or considered removing Sqirl jam products from their shelves. A statement from Diaspora Co., a sustainable spice company known for its single-source turmeric, said that after “hours of talks with Sqirl employees (current and former), an exposure to mold and some difficult leadership convos of Sqirl “, considered his The recent improvised collaboration with Sqirl will be” a mistake “.
The company has removed the remaining jars from its site and is offering rebates to customers who purchased the product.
