FLORIDA. A Popeyes at 4108 S University Blvd in Jacksonville accumulated nine high-severity violations and three intermediate violations during the most recent inspection period, the worst performance of any Popeyes location in Florida over the past 90 days. Inspectors cited the restaurant for food not cooked to the required minimum temperature, no employee health policy, employees not reporting illness symptoms, inadequate handwashing, food in poor condition, and improperly cleaned food contact surfaces, among others.
That single location accounts for more high-severity violations than any other Popeyes in the state during the June 13 through September 10 inspection window.
What Inspectors Found
Across the chain's 193 Florida locations, inspectors completed 4,534 inspections on record and found an average of 4.36 violations per visit. The statewide pass rate sits at 79.27 percent, meaning roughly one in five Popeyes inspections resulted in a failing grade. Three locations have been emergency-closed this year.
The Jacksonville University Boulevard location drew the broadest range of serious citations. Inspectors found no person in charge present or performing duties, no written employee health policy, and employees not reporting illness symptoms, three violations that together describe a kitchen operating without the most basic layer of oversight. Food not cooked to the required minimum temperature was also cited, a finding that carries particular weight at a chain built on fried chicken.
The Popeyes at 45 Duval Station Rd in Jacksonville was close behind with seven high-severity violations and four intermediate ones. Among the citations: food from an unapproved or unknown source, parasite destruction procedures not followed, improperly cleaned food contact surfaces, and toxic chemicals improperly stored or labeled. Improper sewage or wastewater disposal rounded out the intermediate findings.
The Popeyes at 1324 Dunn Ave in Jacksonville also drew seven high-severity violations. Inspectors cited that location for no person in charge, employees not reporting illness symptoms, food not cooked to the required minimum temperature, improperly cleaned food contact surfaces, and toxic chemicals improperly stored. Improper sewage disposal was noted as an intermediate violation.
Three Jacksonville Popeyes locations in the same inspection cycle, each with seven or more high-severity violations.
The Popeyes at 5950 Park Blvd North in Pinellas Park was cited for four high-severity violations, including improper handwashing technique, inadequate shell stock identification, improperly cleaned food contact surfaces, and no allergen awareness demonstrated. Two intermediate violations, including improper sewage disposal and multi-use utensils not properly cleaned, were also recorded.
The Popeyes at 5581 Soutel Dr in Jacksonville drew three high-severity violations alongside four intermediate ones, including single-use items improperly reused and improper sanitizing solution or procedures. The Popeyes at 600 34th St N in St. Petersburg was cited for three high-severity violations, all chemical-related: toxic chemicals improperly stored or labeled, toxic substances improperly identified or stored, and food contact surfaces not properly cleaned or sanitized.
The Popeyes at 4493 Commercial Way in Spring Hill drew citations for food not cooked to the required minimum temperature, no consumer advisory for raw or undercooked foods, toxic chemicals improperly stored, and improper sewage disposal. The Popeyes at 3191 Hwy 44 in New Smyrna Beach was cited for employees not reporting illness symptoms, food in poor condition, no consumer advisory, improper sewage disposal, and inadequate ventilation and lighting.
What These Violations Mean
The employee illness violations documented at the Jacksonville University Boulevard and Dunn Avenue locations, and in New Smyrna Beach, represent one of the most direct transmission routes from kitchen to customer. When a location has no written health policy and employees are not required to report symptoms, a worker sick with Norovirus, Salmonella, or Hepatitis A can handle food through an entire shift. Norovirus alone infects 20 million Americans annually, and a single infected food handler can sicken dozens of customers before anyone connects the cases.
The food not cooked to the required minimum temperature citations at the University Boulevard, Dunn Avenue, and Spring Hill locations matter acutely at a fried chicken chain. Salmonella survives in poultry below 165 degrees Fahrenheit. Serving undercooked chicken is not a paperwork error.
The cluster of chemical storage violations, appearing at St. Petersburg, Duval Station Road, Spring Hill, Dunn Avenue, and Soutel Drive, describes a different but equally immediate hazard. Cleaning chemicals stored near or above food preparation surfaces can contaminate food directly, and mislabeled containers mean employees may not know what they are handling or how dangerous it is. Chemical poisoning from improperly stored cleaners does not require a slow incubation period.
The food from an unapproved or unknown source citation at the Duval Station Road location is notable for a chain of this size. When food bypasses USDA or FDA inspection, there is no traceability if customers become ill. Investigators cannot trace an outbreak back to a source that was never documented.
The Longer Record
Statewide, the chain has accumulated 4,534 inspection records across 193 Florida locations. That volume alone reflects years of regulatory contact, and the 79.27 percent pass rate means inspectors have documented failures in roughly one of every five visits. Three emergency closures this year add to that picture.
Jacksonville stands out within that record. Four of the ten worst-performing locations in this 90-day window are in Jacksonville, and two of them, University Boulevard and Dunn Avenue, share the same cluster of management-failure violations: no person in charge, no illness policy, employees not reporting symptoms. When those three violations appear together, they describe a systemic breakdown in oversight rather than an isolated lapse.
The Tice-operated locations, a franchise group appearing in St. Petersburg, Spring Hill, and New Smyrna Beach, each drew three high-severity violations in the same window. The chemical storage violations appeared at both St. Petersburg and Spring Hill locations, suggesting a shared training or compliance gap across that operator's portfolio.
The Popeyes at 101 N Ridgewood Ave in Daytona Beach and the Popeyes at 116 W Merritt Island Cswy on Merritt Island drew fewer violations, two high-severity each, but both recorded the improperly reused single-use items citation, and the Daytona Beach location added four intermediate violations including improper sewage disposal and equipment in poor repair.
The Pattern
The violations documented this summer do not cluster around one type of failure. Chemical hazards, temperature failures, management absences, illness policy gaps, and unsanitary food contact surfaces appear across different cities, different franchise operators, and different inspection visits. That distribution, rather than concentrating in one bad location, is what makes the statewide 79.27 percent pass rate the most consequential number in this data.
The Jacksonville University Boulevard location's nine high-severity violations, including both undercooked food and no mechanism to keep sick employees out of the kitchen, remain on the record without any documented resolution in the data provided here.
