Chico Terrace Care: Food Safety Violations Found - CA
The cook assembled cookies, milk and thickener without measuring, then poured the runny mixture into dessert bowls. When inspectors tasted the result alongside the facility's registered dietitian, all agreed the pureed cookie was "sticky and gummy."
That was one of multiple food safety and quality violations inspectors documented during their March 6 visit to the 188 Cohasset Lane facility, which serves 72 residents.
Resident 372 told inspectors the facility chicken was "way overdone" and pork was "difficult to cut and needed more seasoning." Resident 15 said the chicken was "sometimes difficult to cut." Resident 59 wished the food "tasted a little better" and said meat was "difficult to cut." Resident 18 called the chicken "hard to chew and cut."
The complaints matched what inspectors found when they evaluated test meal trays with the facility's registered dietitian. Neither could taste ranch dressing on chicken that was supposed to be prepared with ranch dressing. The recipe called for chicken breasts to be baked for 15 minutes, removed from the oven, covered in ranch dressing, then returned to the oven.
But cook B didn't follow the recipe. She didn't drain the chicken after 15 minutes as directed and didn't grease the baking sheets. Instead, she poured an unknown amount of cooking oil onto the sheets. She told inspectors she didn't use ranch dressing on some chicken because there were residents who were lactose intolerant at the facility.
When inspectors reviewed meal tickets for 68 residents that day, they found zero residents listed as lactose intolerant. One resident disliked milk as a beverage but consumed dairy as an ingredient. Fourteen residents disliked milk as a beverage only.
The potatoes were equally problematic. The recipe for roasted red potatoes called for one teaspoon of salt for 10 pounds, 13 ounces of potatoes. The registered dietitian agreed this wasn't enough salt. When inspectors and the dietitian tasted both regular and pureed potatoes, all agreed they "tasted like they had no seasoning."
The kitchen itself presented multiple food safety hazards. Inspectors found cockroach traps under the coffee station sink, along with what appeared to be evidence of roaches. A dried brown, kidney-shaped object approximately three-quarters of a centimeter long was observed next to one of the traps. Coffee grounds were scattered under the sink in both back corners.
The maintenance technician told inspectors he had placed the roach traps under the sink but "forgot about them." He said he last looked at the traps two months earlier and didn't notify dietary staff about evidence of pests. The facility's pest vendor only treated outside the building.
Throughout the kitchen, equipment was dirty and damaged beyond cleaning. The industrial mixer had dried food on the bottom of the stand and behind the bowl. The extreme blender had dried food on the motor base and buttons, with a wet brown ring under the blades. Three large pots were burnt on the bottom and warped, with pitted interiors. Four knives in wall storage had food residue on them.
Rusted shelving in the storage room held dried food. Cabinet doors and drawers had worn finishes that couldn't be properly cleaned. The floor in the refrigerator/freezer room was damaged in three locations. Walls had chipped paint in multiple areas.
Staff hygiene practices compounded the problems. One dietary aide scratched her face with gloved hands while loading meal trays and continued placing items on trays without washing hands or changing gloves. Another aide prepared dessert without gloves, touching the tops and bottoms of dessert bowls, scratching her nose, then continuing to scoop red Jell-O into cups without washing her hands.
The aide told inspectors she "was not sure if she should wear gloves when she prepared the dessert cups."
A cook wore the same black apron while cleaning equipment and preparing food, violating infection control procedures. Another aide stretched over a soiled counter to clean it without wearing an apron, getting sprayed with overspray in the process.
The facility's sanitizing equipment wasn't working properly either. When a dietary aide tested the chlorine concentration in the sanitizer machine, it measured 200 parts per million. The aide said levels should be between 50 and 100 parts per million and that the chlorine was "too concentrated," but said he didn't know if that was a problem.
The dietary manager said using too much chlorine wasn't a problem and that she would call the company to fix the machine if levels were too high.
The ice machine hadn't been properly cleaned. The maintenance technician said policy required monthly cleaning but he didn't clean it in February "because February was a short month." He last cleaned it January 30 but confirmed he didn't do the required sanitization process with bleach, saying he only sanitized "every few months."
Mineral deposits had built up inside the six-month-old ice machine. The maintenance technician said the deposits were "difficult to avoid with area water supply" and that he last changed the filter December 30.
Beyond food quality and safety, the facility failed to offer bedtime snacks to residents as required by its own policy. All four residents interviewed said staff didn't offer them snacks, though they would like to receive them. Resident 34 said he had to ask staff for snacks if he wanted them.
The facility policy stated that bulk bedtime snacks should be provided to each nursing station daily, with individual and bulk snacks available at nurses' stations for residents. But when inspectors checked both nursing stations at 3:40 PM and 3:42 PM, neither had resident snacks stocked in refrigerators or freezers.
The dietary manager said residents could receive snacks at 10:00 AM, 3:00 PM, and 7:30 PM, and that staff could obtain snacks from nursing stations when the kitchen was closed. A licensed vocational nurse said if nursing stations ran out of snacks, staff could get them from the other station or the charge nurse could restock from the kitchen.
But the system wasn't working. None of the residents interviewed were receiving the snacks the facility promised to provide.
The violations affected all 72 residents at the facility, with inspectors noting the failures had potential to result in decreased meal intake, weight loss, decline in health status, cross-contamination, pest attraction, and foodborne illness.
Full Inspection Report
The details above represent a summary of key findings. View the complete inspection report for Chico Terrace Care Center from 2025-03-06 including all violations, facility responses, and corrective action plans.
Additional Resources
Data source: Official federal inspection data from the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS).
Editorial process: AI-synthesized regulatory data, reviewed for accuracy by our editorial team.
Professional review: All content reviewed by Christopher F. Nesbitt, Sr., NH EMT & BU-trained Paralegal.
Last verified: June 20, 2026 · Our methodology
CHICO TERRACE CARE CENTER in CHICO, CA was cited for violations during a health inspection on March 6, 2025.
The cook assembled cookies, milk and thickener without measuring, then poured the runny mixture into dessert bowls.
Health inspections identify deficiencies that facilities must correct. Violations range from minor documentation issues to serious safety concerns. Review the full report below for specific details and facility response.