Heavy Metal Sausage Co. Pauses Table Service Following City Health Inspection

Heavy Metal Sausage Co.’s Trattoria dinner in South Philly / Photograph by Paolo Jay Agbay (originally featured in “The Semi-Secret Dinner Parties Reimagining Philly’s Restaurant Scene”)

On August 21st, the health inspectors visited Heavy Metal Sausage Co. on Porter Street, deep in South Philly. They arrived early in the afternoon, stuck around for more than three hours, and when they were done, Heavy Metal was told that they were no longer allowed to serve guests indoors. This meant no more lunch services, no more trattoria dinners, no more seating at all.

The news hit Reddit and the r/Philadelphiaeats community pretty quickly, and the commenters responded with the customary grace and restraint. Owner Pat Alfiero jumped in to have his say as well, writing:

We are not shut down! The shop is opening as usual tomorrow. Unfortunately, the health dept., even though for the last 4 years has approved us for dine in, has changed their opinion on our bathroom being for customer use. Because of that we are not able to have any dine in, so no dinner service for a bit, but can still do takeout. We are currently working with the health dept. to get this all sorted out. I normally wouldn’t comment on anything but figured I’d give whatever clarity I could.

Love youse all, Pat

Thing is, the inspection report (which is available here) details problems beyond the bathrooms. These issues included both minor violations (things like improperly labeled containers of beef tallow, or an unauthorized person walking through the kitchen to get their CSA pickup) and some pretty major ones, like unlicensed food prep being done in the basement, a lack of handwashing sinks and cooks working on electric burners without adequate ventilation. There were also the ones you see on almost every report: lack of hairnets, improper use of gloves, mouse droppings behind the equipment, storage not elevated off the floor.

All told, there were 10 violations requiring intervention (meaning some serious corrective action needed to be taken). Four were handled immediately (like moving around cleaning supplies and mop buckets), but some of the others will require a more extensive fix. And paperwork. Lots and lots of paperwork.

But Alfiero was right: Heavy Metal is not shut down. They can no longer do prep in the basement (at least until some new equipment has been installed), can’t cook on burners or grills (without a new ventilation system), and can’t seat guests (until they come up with a solution for a compliant bathroom), but they are still open for takeout and meat orders.

On Instagram, Alfiero spoke straight to the camera, laying out what’s happening now and what has to be done next, saying, in part, “We are experiencing a few speed bumps right now at the shop. The city is telling us we are no longer approved to have seats inside, so that pretty much means we are no longer able to do dinner service and we are no longer allowed to have seats inside for lunch service. The shop is still open, Thursday through Sunday, and we can do all of our normal stuff in the shop to-go — our sandwiches and all that stuff — but unfortunately no more dinner. Um… Please come support us? This is tough on us financially, for sure. But yup, we’re still going to be here.”

The team at Heavy Metal is currently working with the city to figure out compliance solutions, but there’s no word yet on how long that might take. The two biggest issues seem to be with the customer bathroom (which is now only accessible through the kitchen), and that the shop’s Plan Review Application, which is a detailed document showing all kitchen equipment, bathrooms, plumbing, storage, etc., was submitted before construction was finished, or that alterations were made after the plan was approved. And none of this is really all that surprising, considering the space was originally designed as (and still is) a takeout charcuterie and sandwich shop. The additional services, the tables and chairs, and those trattoria nights, were all added later, as business and the customer base grew. For four years, according to Alfiero, everything was cool. But operating without hoods? Cooking on open burners in a space that’s only meant for ovens? That’s some pretty basic stuff that anyone in the industry understands is against the rules. Does it happen? Absolutely. And sometimes you get tagged for it — which is exactly what health inspectors are supposed to do.

For now, reservations for all services have been suspended and all we can do is wait and see what happens next. Personally, I’m hoping Heavy Metal comes out the other side of this whole. I like the place, and I’ve always liked the work they do there. It’s rare to have a place doing whole-animal butchery that also has a killer menu. Plus, I absolutely understand the kind of borderline outlaw mentality in the restaurant industry that makes people push against the boundaries of the rules to try and do cool things that may (or may not) be strictly allowed. So, here’s hoping that they figure out a workable solution with the city quickly, that the pause in table service is brief, the fines and fees light, and the paperwork manageable.

In the meantime, for all of you industry folks out there: Philly’s health inspectors have been on quite the tear lately, so keep those gloves fresh and the hairnets on, okay?