SOUTH PASADENA, FL. A state inspector visiting Asian House at 6800 Gulfport Blvd S on April 20 found that food was not being cooked to required minimum temperatures, that employees were not reporting illness symptoms, and that toxic chemicals were improperly stored near food. The restaurant logged seven high-severity violations in a single visit. It was not closed.
The finding on undercooked food is not a paperwork problem. Salmonella in poultry survives below 165 degrees Fahrenheit, and a kitchen that is not hitting required minimum temperatures is a kitchen where that survival is possible on every plate that goes out.
What Inspectors Found
The inspector also cited improper handwashing technique. This is distinct from failing to wash hands at all. An employee who washes hands incorrectly may believe the step has been completed while pathogens remain on the skin, and that employee then handles food.
Toxic chemicals were found improperly stored or labeled. The risk there is acute: a mislabeled or misplaced chemical near food preparation areas can contaminate food directly, and in a kitchen where employees are already not following proper illness reporting or cooking protocols, the margin for error is thin.
Two more violations compound the picture. The restaurant was cited for failing to properly use time as a public health control, meaning food was allowed to sit in the temperature danger zone without adequate tracking. It was also cited for not posting a consumer advisory for raw or undercooked foods, which means customers who are elderly, pregnant, or immunocompromised had no warning that what they ordered carried additional risk.
The seventh high-severity citation was for required procedures for specialized processes not being followed. Specialized processes, which can include smoking, curing, fermenting, or reduced-oxygen packaging, require precise documentation and controls because they create conditions where dangerous bacteria can multiply if steps are skipped or recorded incorrectly.
What These Violations Mean
The illness non-reporting violation is considered by public health officials to be one of the most direct routes to a multi-victim outbreak. Norovirus, Hepatitis A, and Salmonella can all be transmitted when a symptomatic food worker handles food without disclosing their condition. A kitchen policy that does not enforce reporting means an infected employee can work through an entire shift, touching dozens of orders.
The combination of undercooking and improper time controls is particularly concerning because both violations represent failures at different points of the same safety system. Temperature kills pathogens. Time limits exposure. When both controls fail simultaneously, food that was never fully safe to begin with is also allowed to remain in the danger zone longer than it should be.
The missing consumer advisory for raw or undercooked foods is a legal requirement precisely because the population who faces the highest risk from those items, people with weakened immune systems, older adults, and pregnant women, cannot identify the risk on a menu without a disclosure. Without that notice, they cannot make an informed choice.
The Longer Record
The April 20 inspection did not arrive without warning. Asian House has 30 inspections on record and 304 total violations documented over that history. The pattern of high-severity citations is consistent and long-running.
In February 2025, inspectors found six high-severity violations and two intermediate violations. In May 2024, they found eight high-severity violations and five intermediate ones. In January 2023, the count reached nine high-severity violations and five intermediate violations in a single inspection.
The restaurant was emergency-closed once before, in December 2018, after inspectors documented rodent activity. It was allowed to reopen the following day.
The inspection dates tell their own story. High-severity violations appeared in August 2023, June 2023, January 2023, May 2024, February 2025, April 2025, and December 2025, before the seven-violation inspection in April 2026. In most of those visits, the count of high-severity violations was three or more.
Open for Business
Florida law permits inspectors to order an emergency closure when a facility presents an immediate threat to public health. The threshold typically involves conditions such as active pest infestation, sewage backup, or loss of running water.
Seven high-severity violations, including undercooking, illness non-reporting, and improperly stored toxic chemicals, did not meet that threshold on April 20.
Asian House remained open after the inspection.