A Calgary restaurant that was unsafe enough to fine, was not unsafe enough to close, reports the Calgary Herald.

A Chestermere restaurant has been fined $19,090 after a series of inspections over a three-year period found evidence of improper food handling.

Violations included failure to ensure food was protected from contamination, failure to ensure high-risk food was stored at proper temperatures, failure to ensure equipment and utensils in contact with food were sanitary, and failure to ensure handwashing stations were properly supplied with soap and papertowels.

Even after several inspections and warnings violations continued, Crown prosecutor O’Neill said.

"You’d think that they’d be on their absolute best behaviour, but the violations continued."

Chestermere Landing Steakhouse and Jovan’s Pizza was never closed during the process and received a clean bill of health from inspectors last month.

Why was the establishment never closed? And why don’t the inspection reports available online mention that the establishment has been taken to court? Seems like a waste of a disclosure system if the information available to the public doesn’t communicate health risks associated with an establishment.