KTNV – Las Vegas’ news leader – reports that inspectors from the Southern Nevada Health District slapped the sushi bar at Osaka restaurant with a 38 demerit C grade.

Rice, eel and miso were also at the wrong temperatures. And several packages of fish were thawing at room temperature. An employee was also seen wiping his knife with a dirty towel. Both hand sinks were blocked and pooling water was found under a small cooler. Butane gas was stored with the food. And the health report says the person in charge couldn’t demonstrate any knowledge of general food safety.

Contact 13 stopped by to ask about the violations at the sushi bar but no one was available to speak with us. Later that day, we spoke with Owner, Gene Nakanishi, who issued a statement:

"The inspector had a trainee with them at the time. I believe the trainee was looking to impress the inspector and show she was capable of catching any little violation. We want the public to know our sushi bar is clean and safe and we’ve never had an issue."

Gene does admit things got worse before they got better. A couple days later, the sushi bar was shut down after a re-inspection. But the next day, the inspector was out again and the sushi bar was reopened for business.

The Southern Nevada Health District confirms, Osaka’s sushi bar was shut down but re-opened the very next day. The sushi bar is now operating with a zero demerit, A grade.