Indonesia should learn this from Australia

Han&squo;s cafe Kalamunda fined after rats found in kitchen | PerthNow

There are so many restaurants here which are worse than Han's cafe in kalamunda, but they just do their business as usual because we don't have a kind of food inspectors. Therefore, some people have been victims of nasty restaurants. 

HAN'S Cafe in Kalamunda has been convicted of breaching food-health regulations after rats were found in the restaurant's dirty kitchen.

Han's owner Sitha Sen has been fined more than $1000 and ordered to pay $7175 in clean up costs by the WA Health Department this month.

The restaurant has also been named and shamed on the department’s website.

Among the offences which occurred between October 21 2008 and March 24 2009 are:

- Operating an unclean premises

- Operating unclean appliances

- Failing to protect food from contamination

- Failing to keep food at a safe temperature

And the presence of vermin.

This is the second Hans restaurant to be prosecuted by the department in the past six months.

In January, Han's on Oxford St in Leederville was fined nearly $4000 for similar offences.

Eighteen popular WA restaurants were fined last year for health breaches, ranging from having rats on the premises to inadequate protection of food.

Phone checks on restaurants

This type of information may soon be available to mobile phone users.

Developers are planning iPhone software that uses GPS to locate patrons on an interactive map.

Any nearby restaurants found to have breached health regulations are highlighted by a red pointer.
Details, including the amount a company has been fined and the conviction, are displayed in a sidebar.

Mogeneration chief Keith Ahern said he built the system because he wanted to know which restaurants to avoid.

``Information on restaurant convictions was almost inaccessible where it was and when you needed it, but now it is easily available,'' he said.

Users will be able to view a text list of offending restaurants.

``You can see all the details, from the fine issued to the most recent violation, and seeing the details is important because sometimes it's just a leaky tap and personally that doesn't bother me,'' Mr Ahern said.

``But sometimes it is a lot worse and you are really glad to have that information.''

The company has also developed a New York version of its product, called Food Watch.

Mr Ahern said he hoped to keep the software free in Australia, but sell it to US users.

Information about convictions can be downloaded in PDF form from http://www.public.health.wa.gov.au/2/825/2/publication of names of offenders.pm