ORLANDO, FL. Employees at a Sand Lake Road bar and kitchen were not reporting illness symptoms to management on May 26, 2026, according to state inspection records, and the facility had no written employee health policy in place to require them to do so.
State inspectors cited American Social Bar & Kitchen at 7335 W Sand Lake Road for seven high-severity violations and two intermediate violations during that visit. The restaurant was not emergency-closed.
What Inspectors Found
The person in charge was either absent or not performing required duties during the inspection. That finding sits at the top of the violation list for a reason: when no one is actively managing food safety, other violations follow.
The record shows they did.
Inspectors documented improper handwashing technique among employees, meaning staff were making attempts to wash their hands but doing so incorrectly, leaving pathogens on their hands before handling food. Toxic chemicals were improperly stored or labeled near the food operation. The facility had no consumer advisory posted for raw or undercooked menu items.
Time was also being used as a public health control without being properly applied. Under state code, when a facility opts to track time rather than temperature for certain foods, that system requires precise documentation and strict limits. Inspectors found it was not being followed correctly.
Sewage or wastewater was being disposed of improperly, and ventilation and lighting were cited as inadequate.
What These Violations Mean
The illness-reporting and health policy violations are the ones that most directly put customers at risk. Norovirus, which causes the majority of foodborne illness outbreaks in restaurant settings, spreads most efficiently when a sick employee handles food without anyone knowing or intervening. A written health policy is the mechanism that creates that intervention. American Social had neither the policy nor the reporting practice in place.
Improper handwashing technique compounds that risk. An employee who attempts to wash their hands but does so incorrectly, too briefly, without soap, or without reaching all surfaces, can transfer pathogens to every food item they subsequently touch. The attempt provides no protection if the technique fails.
The toxic chemical violation introduces a separate and acute risk. Chemicals stored near food, or chemicals without proper labels, can contaminate food directly. Mislabeled containers create the additional hazard that staff may not recognize what they are handling or how to respond if a spill occurs.
The missing consumer advisory for raw or undercooked foods matters specifically for customers who are pregnant, elderly, immunocompromised, or otherwise at elevated risk. Without a menu notice, those customers cannot make an informed choice about dishes that carry inherent pathogen risk, including undercooked burgers, raw shellfish, or eggs prepared to order.
The Longer Record
The May 2026 inspection was not an anomaly. State records show American Social Bar & Kitchen has been inspected 19 times and has accumulated 188 total violations across that history. The facility has never been emergency-closed.
The pattern in recent inspections is consistent. In October 2025, inspectors cited seven high-severity and one intermediate violation. In April 2025, six high-severity and two intermediate violations. In October 2024, the facility was inspected three times across three days, including one visit that produced 11 high-severity and four intermediate violations.
The April 2024 inspection produced six high-severity violations. The October 2023 inspection cycle followed the same shape: a routine visit with one high-severity citation, followed the next day by six high-severity and one intermediate citation.
That two-day pattern in October 2023 and again in October 2024 suggests the facility was flagged for a follow-up after an initial inspection found problems, and the follow-up found more. The October 1, 2024 visit, which produced 11 high-severity violations, was that kind of return visit.
Still Open
The cumulative picture across 19 inspections is one of recurring high-severity violations in the same general categories: management control, employee health practices, and food handling procedures. The numbers have not trended downward.
After the May 26, 2026 inspection, with seven high-severity violations on the books including employees not reporting illness and no health policy in place to require it, American Social Bar & Kitchen remained open for business.