MELROSE, FL. Inspectors visiting Betty's Pizza & Subs on Wynnwood Avenue on May 28 found food that had not been cooked to the required minimum temperature, a violation that puts customers directly at risk of surviving pathogens including Salmonella. The restaurant was not closed.
That single finding was one of seven high-severity violations documented during the visit, with zero intermediate violations mixed in. Every citation logged that day sat at the highest risk tier.
What Inspectors Found
The undercooking violation was accompanied by two separate chemical storage citations. Inspectors flagged both improperly stored or labeled toxic chemicals and toxic substances that were improperly identified, stored, or used. Those are distinct violations, meaning the facility's handling of hazardous materials failed on more than one front during the same visit.
Food contact surfaces were found to not be properly cleaned or sanitized. That category, cutting boards, prep surfaces, and any equipment that touches food directly, is one of the primary vectors for transferring bacteria from one item to another.
Inspectors also cited inadequate shell stock identification and records. Betty's Pizza & Subs is listed as a pizza and subs operation, but the presence of shellfish on the menu, without the required traceability tags, was enough to generate a high-severity citation.
The handwashing violation was not about a missing sink or missing soap. It was about technique. Employees were observed washing their hands incorrectly. And no person in charge was present or performing duties during the inspection.
What These Violations Mean
The undercooking violation is the one with the most direct consequence for a customer. Salmonella in poultry survives below 165 degrees Fahrenheit. A piece of chicken that looks done and is not is indistinguishable to the person eating it. Illness from Salmonella typically begins 6 to 48 hours after exposure, long after any connection to a specific meal becomes difficult to prove.
The two chemical violations, logged separately, point to a kitchen where hazardous substances were not properly separated from food preparation areas or were not clearly identified. Mislabeled chemicals can be mistaken for food-safe products. Chemicals stored near food can contaminate surfaces, utensils, or the food itself without any visible sign.
The handwashing citation deserves its own attention. Improper technique means a handwashing attempt was made and still left pathogens on the employee's hands. The motion happened. The contamination did not leave. That distinction matters because it is invisible to a customer and invisible to the employee.
The absence of a person in charge compounds everything else. State data consistently shows that kitchens without active managerial oversight accumulate critical violations at three times the rate of those with engaged supervision. On May 28, no one at Betty's was in a position to catch or correct what inspectors found.
The Longer Record
The May 28 inspection was not the first time Betty's Pizza & Subs generated a long list of high-severity findings. The facility has 31 inspections on record and 219 total violations accumulated across that history.
Six of the eight most recent inspections before May 28 produced high-severity violations. The September 2025 inspection found 6 high-severity violations. The March 2025 inspection found 6 high and 3 intermediate. The August 2024 inspection found 9 high and 2 intermediate. The April 2024 inspection found 6 high and 2 intermediate.
The two inspections that produced zero high-severity violations, May 2025 and April 2023, sit between stretches of repeated high-severity findings. The pattern is not a facility working toward compliance. It is a facility that periodically clears an inspection and then returns to the same range of critical failures.
Betty's has never been emergency-closed in its inspection history.
The Pattern
Seven consecutive high-severity violations in a single inspection, with no intermediate citations to soften the picture, represents a facility where the most serious food safety failures were concentrated. No minor issues. No mixed record. Every violation logged that day carried the highest risk designation the state assigns.
The 219 violations across 31 inspections place this facility well above what a routine inspection record looks like. The repeat appearances of high-severity categories, management failures, temperature control, food contact surfaces, suggest that corrections made after one inspection have not held.
No emergency closure order was issued after the May 28 visit. Betty's Pizza & Subs on Wynnwood Avenue remained open for business.