After a failed recent health inspection forced them to close for the weekend, Oak Park Brewing Company reopened this week for lunch with hopes that rodents, roaches and weevils won't keep customers from returning.
Owner and co-founder Tom Karvonen was more than willing to speak with ABC10's Frances Wang about failing health inspections, hoping to gain customers' trust back.
"Everyone here takes pride in being clean and keeping the place nice," said Karvonen. "But regardless, we had issues in the back mill room where we store our grains. We had some mice."
Mice weren't the only issue. A health inspector with Sacramento County first came May 18 and found more than 60 cockroaches, two dead rodents, more than 150 rodent droppings, and more than 20 weevils in the masa of a bulk container.
The inspector returned a few more times that same weekend and found more violations.
By Tuesday morning, a spokesperson with Sacramento County said that everything was all cleaned up and was up to code.
"A couple of my regulars have come in and said, 'Yay, you're open.'" Karvonen explained, "but that's it."
Over the weekend, Karvonen said they had the building fogged and deep-cleaned.
"We reviewed our whole procedures and policies for clean-up, adding some more layers," Karvonen said. "We take it seriously. We want to maintain a safe and clean environment, where people can have great food, great beer, hear great music and enjoy our patio."
Karvonen adds that they have raised grain racks higher off the ground, increasing janitorial service, and have considered hiring a new pest control services company, something they said they received frequently.
Karvonen said he was shocked to fail the health inspection after running smoothly for more than three years. He believes some of the challenges might come from the age of the building and the area.
"'The building has been around since 1925," Karvonen said. "There's a few cracks and crevices [and I] know this neighborhood has a lot of insects. When we were under construction, there were a ton to deal with. Even walking down the sidewalk, you see them running across the street."
A health inspector will continue following-up with the brewery for the next couple of weeks.
While Oak Park Brewing Company is receiving a lot of attention for failing their recent health inspection, it's not the only food facility having problems.
In the last two weeks, 15 food facilities in Sacramento County have closed. As of Tuesday, 14 of them have passed reinspections and reopened.
"We do have a local fan base and a lot of repeat customers," Karvonen said. "Hopefully, they'll all stay loyal and hopefully we can win back [some of] the people that might be discouraged now."
You can check what restaurants have closed and reopened bi-weekly.
Follow the conversation on Facebook with Frances Wang.