TAMPA, FL. Shogun Sushi on North Dale Mabry Highway drew 13 high-severity violations in a single inspection the week of August 5, including citations for food sourced from unapproved or unknown suppliers, inadequate handwashing facilities, and no employee health policy, state records show.
The unapproved food source citation is among the most serious a restaurant can receive. Inspectors also found food in poor condition or adulterated, inadequate shell stock identification records for shellfish, and food contact surfaces that had not been properly cleaned or sanitized. An employee was cited for not reporting illness symptoms, and inspectors flagged improper hand and arm washing technique on top of the inadequate facilities already documented.
Thirteen high-severity violations at a single address in one inspection week.
The Week's Worst Findings
China Buffet on East Fowler Avenue followed with 12 high-severity violations, including a citation for no person in charge present or performing duties, no employee health policy, an employee failing to report illness symptoms, and food from an unapproved or unknown source. Inspectors also cited inadequate shell stock records and food contact surfaces not properly cleaned or sanitized.
Klas La on North 30th Street accumulated 8 high-severity violations, among them food not cooked to the required minimum temperature, food in poor condition or adulterated, and toxic chemicals improperly stored or labeled. No person in charge was present. Inspectors also found no consumer advisory posted for raw or undercooked foods.
Mi Bandera Bar and Restaurant on West Hillsborough Avenue drew 6 high-severity violations and two intermediate citations that stand out: improper sewage or wastewater disposal, and inadequate or improperly maintained toilet facilities. Those two intermediate violations, combined with citations for toxic chemicals stored improperly and food contact surfaces not sanitized, describe a facility with infrastructure problems beyond the kitchen line.
Mangroves Grill on Spectrum Boulevard was cited for 6 high-severity violations including inadequate handwashing facilities, no consumer advisory for raw or undercooked foods, and a citation for required procedures for specialized processes not being followed. Inspectors also noted time as a public health control was not properly used, a violation that means food was left in the temperature danger zone longer than the documented plan allows.
Senor Rocoto on Hanley Road received 6 high-severity citations including no person in charge, no employee health policy, an employee not reporting illness symptoms, and inadequate shell stock identification records. Inadequate toilet facilities rounded out the findings as an intermediate violation.
Foodys Restaurant on West Hillsborough Avenue drew 6 high-severity violations: no employee health policy, an employee not reporting illness symptoms, improper handwashing technique, inadequate shell stock records, unsanitized food contact surfaces, and no consumer advisory for raw or undercooked foods. Zero intermediate violations accompanied them, meaning every citation inspectors wrote was at the highest severity level.
Pinto Thai on South MacDill Avenue was cited for food not cooked to the required minimum temperature and toxic chemicals improperly stored or labeled, alongside no employee health policy and unsanitized food contact surfaces.
Palau's Cafe on North Armenia Avenue drew a citation for parasite destruction procedures not followed, meaning fish or other proteins subject to parasite risk were not being frozen or cooked to the temperatures required to eliminate organisms like Anisakis. Improper sewage or wastewater disposal was also cited as an intermediate violation.
Sarione Restaurant on West Cypress Street was also cited for parasite destruction procedures not followed, along with inadequate shell stock records, toxic chemicals improperly stored, and food contact surfaces not properly sanitized.
Palm River Pizza on Palm River Road received 5 high-severity violations including food from an unapproved or unknown source, an employee not reporting illness symptoms, and inadequate handwashing. Culver's of Carrollwood on North Dale Mabry Highway drew the same violation count, with citations for inadequate handwashing, improper handwashing technique, unsanitized food contact surfaces, and no consumer advisory for raw or undercooked foods.
Hot Rocks Pizza on Memorial Highway was cited for inadequate shell stock records, no consumer advisory, toxic chemicals improperly stored, an employee not reporting illness symptoms, and improper handwashing technique. Einstein Bros Bagels on North Dale Mabry Highway drew 4 high-severity violations including no allergen awareness demonstrated by staff, toxic chemicals improperly stored, unsanitized food contact surfaces, and an employee not reporting illness symptoms. Three intermediate violations accompanied them, including improper sewage or wastewater disposal and inadequate cooling and cold-holding equipment.
Norky's Pollos a la Brasa on Hanley Road drew a single high-severity citation: no person in charge present or performing duties.
What These Violations Mean
The most frequently cited violation this week, appearing at Shogun Sushi, China Buffet, Senor Rocoto, Foodys Restaurant, Palau's Cafe, and seven other facilities, was the absence of a written employee health policy combined with employees not reporting illness symptoms. These are not paperwork problems. Food workers infected with Norovirus shed millions of viral particles per gram of stool, and a single sick employee working through a shift can expose dozens of customers before anyone notices. The policy and the reporting requirement exist as the first line of defense, and both were missing or broken across the majority of facilities inspected this week.
The food from unapproved source citations at Shogun Sushi, China Buffet, and Palm River Pizza carry a different kind of risk. When food enters a kitchen from an uninspected supplier, there is no traceability. If a customer gets sick, investigators cannot trace the product back through a licensed distributor to identify a contamination source or issue a recall. The food may be fine. It may not be. The inspection system has no way to know.
Parasite destruction failures at Palau's Cafe and Sarione Restaurant represent a hazard that is invisible to the customer. Fish served raw or undercooked, including sushi and ceviche preparations, must be frozen to specific temperatures for specific durations to kill parasites like Anisakis, which can embed in the intestinal wall and cause severe abdominal pain. When the documented freezing procedures are not followed, that protection disappears without any visible sign in the finished dish.
The sewage or wastewater disposal violations at Mi Bandera Bar and Restaurant, Mangroves Grill, and Einstein Bros Bagels are among the most acute hazards in the intermediate category. Raw sewage contains E. coli, Hepatitis A, and other pathogens. When wastewater is not properly contained and disposed of, those organisms can reach food preparation surfaces, employee hands, and finished food without any visible indicator that contamination has occurred.
The Longer Record
China Buffet on East Fowler Avenue has 58 prior inspections on record, the longest history of any facility cited this week. Twelve high-severity violations in the most recent inspection, across a record that spans nearly six decades of state scrutiny, raises the question of whether the violations documented this week represent a new problem or a persistent one. The citations for no person in charge, food from unapproved sources, and employees not reporting illness symptoms are foundational failures, not technical oversights.
Mi Bandera Bar and Restaurant carries 45 prior inspections on record. Senor Rocoto has 41. Both were cited this week for multiple high-severity violations including handwashing failures and missing employee health policies. Facilities with inspection histories that long have been through the correction process many times.
Shogun Sushi, which led the week with 13 high-severity violations, has 24 prior inspections on record. Mangroves Grill has 31. Foodys Restaurant and Norky's Pollos a la Brasa each have 30. None of these are new operations encountering inspectors for the first time.
Culver's of Carrollwood is the newest facility in this week's data, with 13 prior inspections on record, and it still accumulated 5 high-severity violations. Klas La, with 21 prior inspections, drew 8 high-severity violations including a food not cooked to required temperature citation and improperly stored toxic chemicals. Einstein Bros Bagels, also at 20 prior inspections, was the only facility this week cited for no allergen awareness demonstrated by staff, a violation that affects the 32 million Americans living with diagnosed food allergies. That citation remained unresolved in the inspection record reviewed for this report.
