SEBRING, FL. State inspectors visiting Zacks BBQ & Pizza at 5367 US 27 S on October 2, 2026 found food that had not been cooked to the required minimum temperature, an employee who had not reported symptoms of illness, and toxic chemicals stored or labeled improperly, all during a single inspection that produced six high-severity violations. The restaurant was not closed.
The inspection also turned up improper handwashing technique, food contact surfaces that had not been properly cleaned or sanitized, and inadequate shellfish identification records. Two intermediate violations, covering multi-use utensils and wiping cloths, rounded out the list.
What Inspectors Found
The undercooking violation is the most direct threat to anyone who ordered food that day. Salmonella in poultry survives below 165 degrees Fahrenheit, and a plate that looks done can still carry a full bacterial load if internal temperatures were never verified or reached.
The employee illness violation compounds that risk. A worker who does not report symptoms, whether nausea, vomiting, or diarrhea, can contaminate food before anyone knows there is a problem. That contamination path is direct: hands to food to customer.
Then there is the chemical storage violation. Improperly stored or unlabeled toxic chemicals near food create a contamination risk that has nothing to do with cooking temperatures or handwashing. A mislabeled container or a chemical stored above a prep surface can end up in a dish without anyone noticing until a customer is sick.
What These Violations Mean
The combination of undercooking, an unreported sick employee, and unsanitized food contact surfaces at Zacks BBQ on October 2 represents three separate contamination pathways operating at the same time. Each one alone warrants serious concern. Together, they describe a kitchen where multiple basic safeguards had failed simultaneously.
The food contact surface violation matters because cutting boards, prep tables, and utensils that are not properly cleaned and sanitized become transfer points for bacteria from one food item to the next. A surface used for raw poultry that is not sanitized before the next use carries whatever was on that poultry forward, regardless of how the next item is cooked.
Improper handwashing technique is not simply a cleanliness issue. An employee who goes through the motions of washing hands without following proper technique, including adequate scrubbing time and complete rinsing, leaves pathogens on their hands even after a washing attempt. Combined with an employee who had not reported illness symptoms, the handwashing failure at Zacks means contaminated hands may have been touching food throughout the shift.
The shellfish traceability violation is less visible to customers but carries its own serious risk. Oysters, clams, and mussels are often consumed raw or barely cooked. Without proper shell stock records, there is no way to trace a contaminated batch back to its source if customers fall ill. That traceability gap is precisely what makes shellfish outbreaks difficult to contain.
The Longer Record
The October 2026 inspection was not an anomaly. State records show Zacks BBQ & Pizza has been inspected 29 times and has accumulated 169 total violations across its history. The facility has never been emergency-closed.
Every inspection on record over the past three years has produced high-severity violations. The March 2026 visit turned up seven high-severity violations, one more than the October count. The April 2025 inspection found five high-severity violations. The August 2024 and February 2024 inspections each produced four and five high-severity violations respectively.
That is six consecutive inspections, dating back to at least February 2024, each one carrying between three and seven high-severity findings. The categories shift slightly from visit to visit, but the severity level does not.
No single inspection in the recent record shows a clean bill of health or even a low-severity-only result. The most recent inspection without any high-severity violations was in September 2023, when inspectors recorded only an intermediate violation. That was three years ago.
Still Open
Florida's emergency closure process requires inspectors to find an imminent public health hazard, a standard that six high-severity violations on October 2 did not meet under the state's assessment. The restaurant continued serving customers after the inspection concluded.
The record at Zacks BBQ & Pizza now spans 29 inspections, 169 violations, and zero emergency closures. The October 2 visit added six more high-severity citations to that count. As of that inspection date, the doors remained open.
