Two Birds Gets a Visitor...

It's been just over six months since we opened our doors. And before our doors could open we were required to pass an inspection from the Douglas County Heath Department. We passed that one, pretty obviously. Well, a few weeks ago we were visited once again. This is the first time since the initial opening inspection.

After the inspection is finished, the inspector rates a food establishment based on the number of critical and non-critical violations it receives. However, I am not so sure what the cut-off numbers are for each rating.

The ratings range from 'fair' to 'superior', fair being the lowest grade and superior the highest. The following descriptions come directly from douglascountyhealth.com:

Superior - The establishment understands and routinely corrects sanitation deficiencies on a day-to-day basis and does not wait for a health inspection before doing so. in addition, at least 75 percent of employees and management of a superior food establishment must have successfully completed a food safety training course conducted by this department, or its equivalent.

Excellent - The establishment routinely corrects most sanitation deficiencies and immediately corrects the minor violations found at the time of inspection.

Standard - The establishment generally corrects most sanitation deficiencies on a routine basis and corrects violations found at the time of inspection in the time allowed by the inspecting health officer.

Fair - The establishment barely meets minimum standards required by state and local food safety codes. Serious and minor sanitation deficiencies are found on each inspection. Sanitation deficiencies are not corrected on a routine basis and repeat inspections are often a necessary part of regulating these establishments to help assure minimum food safety conditions.

Thanks to our super awesome cleaning skills, as well as the thorough and informative food safety class that Trilety and I took almost four years ago, we got our gold star, a superior rating (Trilety's moment of glory) Happy birds :-)

~Megan

Adventures with Two Birds: Episode 1

These Two Birds go on lots of adventures together, so along with important Bakery Information we post in our blog, we will also fill you on the fun we have outside the shop.

Early last fall, Megan and I visited her dad (Mike) at the airport where he serves as Operations Supervisor for the Omaha Airport Authority. IT WAS SO MUCH FUN! He works overnights, so we went under cover of darkness and in the cloak of a truck to check out the midnight runways!

Megan and I shared the same favorite thing from the trip; the pump station! These pump stations bale out groundwater that could bubble to the surface and compromise the safety of the runways. The interior of the structure was loud, and each shaft we looked down was full of sand and water. . . .I can't imagine what subterranean secrets were held there.

Beyond the pumps, there was also Situation Rooms, Glowing X's, and Empty Fed Ex planes! See below for a photographic illustration of our Airport Adventure!

A view of the Runway from inside the Airport Truck. 

It looks like we're ready to Take Off.

How do you know when a runway is closed? 

There will be a Huge Blinking Illuminated "X" on it!

This is it fully lit.

This is the X mid-lit

This is the mid-blink X

This is me in front of the Fully Lit X!

This is a side-view of the X. . . this could be the best yard art ever.

We learned that shipping crates are not all square, but instead are varying shapes that can Lego & Tetris into the interior of these freight planes - Exciting New Fact.

Sometimes an Occupied Situation Room is exciting, but more often than not, 

these Two Birds prefer a Vacant Situation Room

From left, Megan, Mike (Megan's Dad), and Trilety

Our Hungarian Nut Roll recipe is based on a recipe that Mike's Mom, Henrietta (aka Butch), used to bake every Christmas. For a while, we omitted the raisins from the recipe, but Mike's adorably gruff ribbing was the impetus for the raisins going back in the roll. 

Megan's father is a joy to be around, he's generous and strong, and has the swagger and language of a man straight out of a 1940's Detective film. We had a ball with him that night, and hope to be invited back to the airport again. 

What are your adventures?

~ Trilety