STARKE, FL. Inspectors who visited Call Street Cafe at 111 Call St. on October 9 found that some of the food being served to customers came from unapproved or unknown sources, meaning it had bypassed federal safety inspections entirely and could not be traced if someone got sick.
That was one of eight high-severity violations documented in a single visit. The restaurant remained open.
What Inspectors Found
The unapproved food source violation was not the only finding that put customers directly at risk. Inspectors also cited the cafe for failing to ensure employees report symptoms of illness before working food service, a failure that state and federal health officials identify as a primary driver of multi-victim outbreaks.
Handwashing technique was also flagged as improper. That citation matters because it means employees were making attempts to wash their hands but doing so incorrectly, leaving pathogens on their skin before touching food.
Toxic chemicals were found improperly stored or labeled near food areas. Inspectors additionally cited the cafe for inadequate shellfish identification records, no consumer advisory posted for raw or undercooked menu items, and failure to follow required procedures for specialized food processes such as smoking, curing, or reduced-oxygen packaging. No person in charge was present or performing oversight duties during the inspection.
On the intermediate level, inspectors found improper sewage or wastewater disposal, single-use items being reused, and inadequate toilet facilities.
The inspection also triggered an emergency closure order that same day, October 9, for rodent, roach, and fly activity. The cafe passed a follow-up inspection the next morning and reopened October 10.
What These Violations Mean
Food from unapproved sources is one of the most serious violations a restaurant can receive, not because of what it immediately proves, but because of what it eliminates. When food enters a licensed supply chain, it carries documentation at every step. If a customer gets sick, investigators can trace the product back to its origin. Food from an unknown source has no such trail. If it harbors Listeria, Salmonella, or E. coli, there is no way to identify who else received it or where it came from.
The employee illness reporting failure compounds that risk. Norovirus, the most common cause of foodborne illness outbreaks in restaurant settings, spreads through direct contact with infected food handlers. A single sick employee who does not report symptoms can expose dozens of customers before anyone realizes what is happening. Combined with improper handwashing technique at the same facility on the same day, the conditions for transmission were layered on top of each other.
The chemical storage violation carries a different but immediate danger. Cleaning agents and sanitizers stored near or above food preparation areas can contaminate food directly, either through spills or mislabeling. Acute chemical poisoning from restaurant food, while less common than bacterial illness, produces rapid and severe symptoms.
The absence of a person in charge during the inspection is not a paperwork problem. CDC data consistently shows that facilities without active managerial control on the floor accumulate critical violations at roughly three times the rate of those with engaged supervision. Every other violation found that day occurred in the absence of someone whose job was to prevent it.
The Longer Record
October 9 was not an outlier for Call Street Cafe. It was the worst single inspection in recent memory, but the pattern behind it stretches back years.
State records show the cafe has been inspected 32 times and has accumulated 205 total violations across its history. Of the seven inspections logged between 2023 and 2026 before the October visit, only one, a May 2023 inspection, produced zero high-severity violations. Every other visit found between four and six high-priority citations.
The February 2025 inspection found six high-severity and three intermediate violations. The March 2024 inspection found six high-severity and two intermediate. The September 2024 inspection found five high-severity and two intermediate. The cafe has never gone more than roughly six months between inspections with serious findings.
October 9 marked the cafe's first emergency closure on record, ordered for rodent, roach, and fly activity. That closure was resolved in less than 24 hours. The eight high-severity violations documented during the same visit, including food from unknown sources and employees not reporting illness, did not result in a closure order.
The cafe was still serving customers that afternoon.
