SA Hot Chicken Public record

Bush's Chicken

1332 MILITARY DR SE, San Antonio, 78214
Area: South Side  ·  Metro Health licence 280059

Chain locationRepeat risk factor
37.2Bird Score

Mixed record · rank 69 of 112

Who publishes this, and what they sell. This guide is published by Viking Net, which sells technology services to restaurants — websites, apps, point-of-sale systems and card processing — including to businesses rated on this site. Every rating here is computed by a formula published in full from public records: health inspections, city 311 complaints, published awards, and the state sales-tax permit date. No business can pay to change its score, raise its rank, or have a low score removed, and none has ever been asked to. If that ever changes, this paragraph comes down first.

Latest health inspection

97/100 on Apr 1, 2026 (127 days ago)

Inspections start at 100 and lose points for each violation found. 69 or below is a failing inspection. A score describes one visit on one day — Metro Health says so itself — not the condition of the business today.

View the original inspection record →

Inspection history — 9 on record

Open any inspection to see what the inspector actually found, in plain English, with the Food Code section it was cited under.

Apr 1, 2026 97 3 findings · 1 illness risk factor
Dishwashing & sanitizingIllness risk factor

Food-contact surfaces were not cleaned often enough

Slicers, prep boards and dispensing heads need cleaning on a schedule — every four hours in constant use — not just at close.

“ice machine with debris build up. Ensure to clean ice machine routinely to prevent debris”Inspector’s note · SA Metro Health

Food Code 4-602.11(E)(4) — Equipment Food-Contact Surfaces and Utensils · inspection item 39

Pests

Pests were present, or the premises were not kept free of them

Roaches, flies and rodents move directly between waste and food. A live sighting during an inspection means the population is well established.

“dead pest in storage room. Ensue to remove dead pests and clean routinely”Inspector’s note · SA Metro Health

Food Code 6-501.111(B) — Controlling Pests · inspection item 34

Cleanliness

The premises were not cleaned often enough

Floors, walls, shelving, the areas under and behind equipment. This is the finding for build-up in the places nobody wants to reach.

“debris build up on vents. Ensure to clean physical facilities routinely”Inspector’s note · SA Metro Health

Food Code 6-501.12 — Cleaning, Frequency and Restrictions · inspection item 45

Sep 25, 2025 92 4 findings · 1 illness risk factor
Temperature controlIllness risk factor

Food was not held cold enough or hot enough

Between about 41°F and 135°F bacteria multiply fast. Food parked in that window for hours is the single most common cause of foodborne illness.

“food temping at 44F-45F in walk in cooler. Ensure food is holding temperatures of 41F and below”Inspector’s note · SA Metro Health

Food Code 3-501.16(A)(2) — Time/Temperature Control for Safety Food, Hot and Cold Holding · inspection item 2

Pests

Pests were present, or the premises were not kept free of them

Roaches, flies and rodents move directly between waste and food. A live sighting during an inspection means the population is well established.

“dead and live pests in storage room. Ensure to have routine pest control from a license pest control”Inspector’s note · SA Metro Health

Food Code 6-501.111(B) — Controlling Pests · inspection item 34

Cleanliness

Equipment or utensils were not clean

Split into two standards: anything that touches food must be clean to sight and touch, and everything else must be free of built-up grease, dust and debris. This is the most cited line in the whole code.

“dead pest on equipment. Ensure to keep equipment cleaned”Inspector’s note · SA Metro Health

Food Code 4-601.11(A) — Equipment, Food-Contact Surfaces, Nonfood-Contact Surfaces, and Utensils · inspection item 10

Cleanliness

The premises were not cleaned often enough

Floors, walls, shelving, the areas under and behind equipment. This is the finding for build-up in the places nobody wants to reach.

“debris build up on floor, wall, and vents. Ensure to clean physical facilities routinely”Inspector’s note · SA Metro Health

Food Code 6-501.12 — Cleaning, Frequency and Restrictions · inspection item 45

Jan 31, 2025 99 1 finding
Pests

Pests were present, or the premises were not kept free of them

Roaches, flies and rodents move directly between waste and food. A live sighting during an inspection means the population is well established.

Food Code 6-501.111(B) — Controlling Pests

Jul 8, 2024 100 No violations recorded

✓ Metro Health recorded no violations at this inspection.

Dec 18, 2023 100 No violations recorded

✓ Metro Health recorded no violations at this inspection.

Aug 9, 2023 98 2 findings · 1 illness risk factor
Cross-contaminationIllness risk factor

In-use utensils were stored improperly between uses

Tongs and scoops left in standing lukewarm water sit in a bacteria incubator between every use. They go in the food handle-up, on a clean dry surface, or in water kept above 135°F.

“Scoops with no handles being used in batter. CORRECTIVE ACTION: Only scoops with handles can be used. Handles must be stored in a way that the handle doesn't come in contact with food items. FOOD CODE:”Inspector’s note · SA Metro Health

Food Code 3-304.12(B) — In-Use Utensils, Between-Use Storage · inspection item 39

Building & equipment

Something in the building was broken and not repaired

Broken tile, damaged wall, failing cooler seal. Damaged surfaces cannot be cleaned and they collect what everything else sheds.

“Leaks in handwashing sinks. CORRECTIVE ACTION: Ensure leaks are repaired. FOOD CODE:”Inspector’s note · SA Metro Health

Food Code 6-501.11 — Repairing · inspection item 45

Mar 28, 2023 98 2 findings · 2 illness risk factors
Cross-contaminationIllness risk factor

In-use utensils were stored improperly between uses

Tongs and scoops left in standing lukewarm water sit in a bacteria incubator between every use. They go in the food handle-up, on a clean dry surface, or in water kept above 135°F.

“Scoop with no handle in food and scoop with handle where handle touches food. CORRECTIVE ACTION: Ensure all scoops have handles and handles are stored sticking up so they don't come in contact with food. FOOD CODE:”Inspector’s note · SA Metro Health

Food Code 3-304.12(A) — In-Use Utensils, Between-Use Storage · inspection item 39

Cross-contaminationIllness risk factor

Food was stored where it could be contaminated

Boxes on the floor, food under a leaking line, product stored in the mop area. Anything at floor level catches splash and pests.

“Food storage container stored on ground. CORRECTIVE ACTION: Ensure food is stored at least 6 inches above ground. FOOD CODE:”Inspector’s note · SA Metro Health

Food Code 3-305.11(A)(3) — Food Storage · inspection item 37

Jun 17, 2022 95 5 findings · 1 illness risk factor
Dishwashing & sanitizingIllness risk factor

No test strips for checking sanitizer strength

Sanitizer strength is invisible. Without strips, staff are guessing every single time.

“No test strips found at time of inspection.”Inspector’s note · SA Metro Health

Food Code 4-302.14 — Sanitizing Solutions, Testing Devices · inspection item 29

Pests

Pests were present, or the premises were not kept free of them

Roaches, flies and rodents move directly between waste and food. A live sighting during an inspection means the population is well established.

“Observable amount of flies present in the back of the restaurant, primarily in the storage room.”Inspector’s note · SA Metro Health

Food Code 6-501.111(B) — Controlling Pests · inspection item 34

Pests

Dead pests were not removed

Dead insects and rodents left in place are both a contamination source and a sign the problem is not being worked.

“Dead roaches present in CO2 tank/bag in box room. Ensure dead insects are disposed properly.”Inspector’s note · SA Metro Health

Food Code 6-501.112 — Removing Dead or Trapped Birds, Insects, Rodents, and Other Pests · inspection item 34

Cleanliness

Equipment or utensils were not clean

Split into two standards: anything that touches food must be clean to sight and touch, and everything else must be free of built-up grease, dust and debris. This is the most cited line in the whole code.

“Fans in walk in cooler visibly dirty with an accumulation of dust and mold-like residue on the fans.”Inspector’s note · SA Metro Health

Food Code 4-601.11(C) — Equipment, Food-Contact Surfaces, Nonfood-Contact Surfaces, and Utensils · inspection item 42

Management & permits

A Texas Certified Food Manager requirement was not met

Texas rule 25 TAC §228.31 — a certified food manager must be employed, present during operating hours, and the certificate posted where it can be seen.

“No food handlers certificates present at time of inspection.”Inspector’s note · SA Metro Health

Texas rule 25 TAC §228.31 · inspection item 47

Dec 14, 2021 96 3 findings
Other

A Food Code requirement was not met

The inspector's own note below describes what was found.

“Racks in walk in cooler visibly dirty with an accumulation of dust and mildew-like residue.”Inspector’s note · SA Metro Health

Texas rule 25 TAC §228.113 · inspection item 42

Other

A Food Code requirement was not met

The inspector's own note below describes what was found.

“Handwashing station found in the kitchen not reaching temperatures of at least 100F. *”Inspector’s note · SA Metro Health

Texas rule 25 TAC §228.146 · inspection item 31

Other

A Food Code requirement was not met

The inspector's own note below describes what was found.

“Missing floor tiles found in the corridor between the three compartment sink and walk in coolers.”Inspector’s note · SA Metro Health

Texas rule 25 TAC §228.186 · inspection item 45

What these numbers do and do not mean

An inspection score describes one visit on one day. It is what one inspector recorded on one date at one address — Metro Health says so itself. It is not a standing condition, not a grade for the food, and not a prediction about your lunch. A kitchen that scored 88 in March may be spotless today, and one that scored 100 may not be.

A 311 complaint is a phone call, not a finding. The city records that a member of the public called. It is not a citation, not an investigation result, and not evidence that anything was wrong. The city files it against an address, so where two food businesses share one, neither the record nor we can tell them apart. We publish the count with its denominator and let you weigh it.

Awards are reported, not endorsed. Every recognition on this site carries its publisher, its year and a link to the page we read it on. We did not judge those contests and we do not vouch for them; where a publisher named a business rather than an address, the page says so.

Absence of data is never rendered as a finding. No inspection on record means no Bird Score — never a zero, never quietly ranked last. No award found means we searched 172 recognitions from 13 publishers and found none, which is a statement about press coverage and not about cooking.

If something here is wrong, we will fix it. Every figure links to the record it came from. Email us with the correction and we will check it against the source and correct it within 48 hours, whether or not you are a customer. How to request a correction.