SEBRING, FL. Back in February 2026, state inspectors ordered Cang Tong at 110 Sebring Square closed to the public after finding evidence of rodent activity inside the restaurant, the fifth emergency closure the Highlands County location had accumulated since the previous October.
The closure order was issued February 26. The facility was given until February 27 to vacate, and records show it reopened later that same day at 2:10 p.m.
What Inspectors Found
Cang Tong Emergency Closures: October 2025 to April 2026
The February 26 closure was triggered specifically by rodent activity, the same finding that had shut the restaurant down in October 2025 and again just seven days earlier on February 19, when inspectors documented both roaches and rodents on the premises.
The most recent inspection on record, from May 7, 2026, cited toxic chemicals improperly stored or labeled inside the facility. That violation carries a risk of acute chemical poisoning if improperly labeled or stored chemicals come into contact with food or food-preparation surfaces.
The same inspection also documented improper sewage or wastewater disposal, a finding that creates the risk of fecal contamination spreading through the facility, and the reuse of single-use items such as gloves, cups, or utensils that were not designed for repeated contact with food.
What These Violations Mean
Rodent activity in a food-service kitchen is treated as an emergency condition under Florida law because it is not a static problem. Rodents travel across food-preparation surfaces, contaminate stored ingredients, and leave droppings in areas that are difficult to detect and clean. A single confirmed sighting or trace evidence is enough for inspectors to order an immediate closure because the contamination risk to customers is direct and immediate.
The chemical storage violation documented in May compounds that concern. When toxic cleaning agents or pesticides are stored near food or are improperly labeled, the risk is not theoretical. Mislabeled chemicals have been mistaken for food-safe products in commercial kitchens, with results that range from illness to acute poisoning.
Improper sewage disposal is among the most serious intermediate violations an inspector can cite. Raw sewage carries pathogens including E. coli and salmonella. When wastewater is not properly contained and routed out of a facility, those pathogens can reach food-contact surfaces, equipment, and ingredients without any visible sign that contamination has occurred.
The Pattern
The February closure was not an isolated event. It was the third emergency shutdown in four months, and it would not be the last.
On March 25, less than a month after the February reopening, inspectors shut the restaurant again, this time for both roach and rodent activity. That closure lasted two days before the facility was cleared to reopen on March 27.
April brought two more closures. On April 6, inspectors returned and ordered the restaurant closed again for roach activity. Records do not confirm that location ever formally reopened from that closure. On April 30, inspectors found rodent activity, roach activity, and fly activity simultaneously, triggering the sixth emergency shutdown on record. That closure also has no confirmed reopen date in state records.
The Longer Record
Cang Tong has 56 inspections on record and 616 total violations documented across its history as a permanent food-service establishment. Six of those inspections resulted in emergency closure orders. Five of the six closures occurred within a seven-month window between October 2025 and April 2026.
The inspection data from the spring of 2026 shows a facility that was being visited repeatedly in short succession. Inspectors returned on April 14, April 15, April 30, May 1, May 2, May 4, and May 7, with high-severity violations documented at every single visit. The April 30 inspection, which triggered the sixth closure, recorded six high-severity violations and three intermediate violations in a single visit.
A facility accumulating 616 violations over 56 inspections averages roughly 11 violations per inspection visit. That figure, combined with six emergency closures, places Cang Tong in a category that goes beyond isolated lapses. The violations documented this spring, including toxic chemical storage, sewage disposal failures, and ongoing pest activity across multiple species, show the same categories of concern surfacing repeatedly despite repeated closures and follow-up inspections.
As of the most recent data available, the April 30 closure for rodent, roach, and fly activity has no confirmed reopen date on record.