ORLANDO, FL. State inspectors visiting A Aki Sushi and Steakhouse at 1400 W Sand Lake Road on May 6 found food sourced from unapproved or unknown suppliers, a violation that means some of what the kitchen was serving had bypassed every federal safety inspection designed to catch Listeria, Salmonella, and other pathogens before they reach a customer's plate.
That was one of eight high-severity violations documented that day. The restaurant was not closed.
What Inspectors Found
Inspectors also cited employees for not reporting symptoms of illness. Food workers with unreported symptoms are a direct transmission route for norovirus and other pathogens, and a sushi restaurant, where much of the menu is served raw, amplifies that risk considerably.
Toxic chemicals were found improperly stored or labeled. Chemicals stored near food create an acute poisoning risk if containers are mislabeled or if a spill reaches food prep surfaces.
The kitchen was also cited for food contact surfaces that were not properly cleaned or sanitized, and for failing to use time as a public health control correctly. That second violation matters in a sushi context: when a restaurant opts to track time rather than temperature for items like raw fish, the tracking has to be precise. Inspectors found it was not.
There was no consumer advisory posted for raw or undercooked foods. In a restaurant serving sushi and sashimi, that notice is the last line of defense for elderly customers, pregnant women, and anyone with a compromised immune system who might not otherwise know they are taking a risk.
Rounding out the high-severity list: improper handwashing technique and no person in charge present or performing duties. Five intermediate violations were also cited, covering improper sewage disposal, inadequately cleaned multi-use utensils, poor ventilation and lighting, improper waste disposal, and inadequate toilet facilities.
What These Violations Mean
The unapproved food source violation is among the most consequential on the list. When food enters a kitchen without passing through a USDA- or FDA-regulated supplier, there is no paper trail. If a customer gets sick, investigators cannot trace the contaminated ingredient back to its origin. For a restaurant serving raw fish, that traceability gap is not a technicality.
The employee illness reporting violation compounds every other risk in the building. A sick food handler working on a raw prep line can contaminate dozens of dishes before a single symptom is noticed by management. At A Aki, inspectors found no person in charge was present or performing supervisory duties that day, which means the structure designed to catch exactly that kind of failure was absent.
Improperly cleaned food contact surfaces and multi-use utensils create what food safety researchers call bacterial biofilm, a layer of pathogens that bonds to surfaces and resists standard cleaning within 24 hours of buildup. In a kitchen preparing raw fish, those surfaces are the last barrier between the food and a customer.
The sewage disposal violation adds a separate contamination pathway. Improper handling of wastewater creates the possibility of fecal matter reaching food prep areas, a risk that is distinct from and independent of every other violation on this list.
The Longer Record
The May 6 inspection was not an anomaly. State records show A Aki Sushi and Steakhouse has been inspected 44 times, accumulating 937 total violations across that history.
The pattern of high-severity findings is consistent and recent. In December 2025, inspectors cited six high-severity violations. In April 2025, two separate inspections in a single week produced six high-severity violations on one visit and three on the other. In September 2024, a visit produced seven high-severity violations and six intermediate ones. The inspection in March 2024 turned up ten high-severity violations and six intermediate ones in a single visit.
The restaurant was emergency-closed once before, in June 2019, after inspectors found roach activity. It reopened two days later.
The violations documented across those 44 inspections span food sourcing, temperature control, pest activity, and employee hygiene, the same categories appearing repeatedly across different years and different inspectors.
Still Open
Florida's emergency closure authority is triggered when inspectors determine an imminent hazard to public health exists. On May 6, with eight high-severity violations on the inspection sheet, including food from an unknown source, employees not reporting illness, and no manager on duty, state inspectors determined that threshold had not been met.
A Aki Sushi and Steakhouse on Sand Lake Road remained open that evening.