ST. PETERSBURG, FL. Back in February 2026, state inspectors ordered Lemon Grass Sushi Thai Tapas Inc on Central Avenue shut down after documenting both rodent activity and fly activity inside the restaurant, the fourth emergency closure in the facility's recorded history.
The Florida Department of Business and Professional Regulation ordered the 310 Central Ave. location vacated by February 25. The restaurant reopened later that same day at 3:44 p.m., according to state records.
What Inspectors Found
Lemon Grass Emergency Closure History
The February 24 inspection that triggered the closure produced seven high-severity violations and four intermediate violations. The closure itself was ordered specifically for rodent and fly activity, the same combination of pest problems that had surfaced at the restaurant before.
The two follow-up inspections on February 25, conducted to determine whether the restaurant could reopen, found a combined nine more high-severity violations and seven intermediate violations before the location was cleared to resume service.
The Violations
The most recent inspection on record, conducted May 4, 2026, turned up nine high-severity violations and one intermediate violation, the highest single-inspection severity count in the recent data.
Those nine high-priority citations covered a wide range of failures. Inspectors documented food sourced from unapproved or unknown suppliers, food not cooked to required minimum temperatures, food contact surfaces not properly cleaned or sanitized, and toxic chemicals improperly stored or labeled. They also cited no consumer advisory posted for raw or undercooked foods, a gap that matters at a sushi restaurant where raw fish is a menu staple.
Three of the nine high-severity violations pointed directly at management and staff conduct. Inspectors found no person in charge present or performing duties, no employee health policy or an inadequate one, and improper hand and arm washing technique being used. A tenth violation, at the intermediate level, cited multi-use utensils not properly cleaned.
What These Violations Mean
The rodent and fly activity that triggered the February closure is not a housekeeping issue. Rodents carry Salmonella, Leptospira, and Hantavirus, and they contaminate food surfaces and packaging through droppings, urine, and direct contact. Flies are mechanical vectors, meaning they physically transfer pathogens from waste to food surfaces between landing sites. Both were documented inside an active food service environment.
Food from unapproved or unknown sources, cited in the May inspection, removes the traceability that makes outbreak investigation possible. If a customer gets sick, there is no supply chain record to pull. The USDA and FDA inspection systems that approved sources must pass through exist precisely to catch contamination before food reaches a kitchen.
The finding that no consumer advisory was posted for raw or undercooked foods is a specific concern at a sushi operation. Customers with compromised immune systems, pregnant women, elderly diners, and young children face elevated risk from raw fish and need that disclosure to make an informed choice. The restaurant was operating without it.
Improper handwashing technique, cited alongside no employee health policy, means the facility lacked both the written standard and the physical practice needed to stop a sick employee from transmitting illness directly to food. Norovirus, one of the most common causes of foodborne illness outbreaks in restaurant settings, spreads almost entirely through this route.
The Longer Record
Fifty-one inspections and 536 total violations are on record for this location. That volume, across a permanent food service facility licensed for the address, reflects years of documented interaction with state inspectors, not a single bad stretch.
The two prior emergency closures both came in 2020. The first, in August, was for rodent activity. The second, four months later in December, added roach activity to the rodent problem. Both times the restaurant reopened within a day. The February 2026 closure was the same pattern: pest activity, rapid reopening, continued operation.
The inspection data from the period between the 2020 closures and the 2026 closure shows no extended gap in high-severity citations. The November 2024 inspections, conducted two days apart, produced nine high-severity violations on the first visit and four on the second. The February 2025 inspection found three high-severity violations. The November 2025 inspection found six.
The May 4, 2026 inspection, the most recent in the record, produced nine high-severity violations, matching the worst single-visit count in the recent data. That inspection came more than two months after the February closure and reopening. The state's inspection record for the facility does not show a follow-up inspection after May 4.