MINNEOLA, FL. A state inspector visiting Don Ceviche Peru and Mexico on Highway 27 on May 26 found that employees were not reporting symptoms of illness and the restaurant had no written policy requiring them to do so — a combination that state records identify as the leading cause of multi-victim foodborne outbreaks.
That was one of ten high-severity violations documented at the Minneola restaurant in a single visit. The facility was not closed.
What Inspectors Found
The inspector also cited the restaurant for food in poor condition, mislabeled or adulterated, and for food contact surfaces that were not properly cleaned or sanitized. Both violations create direct pathways for bacterial transfer to plates and glasses reaching customers.
Two separate violations involved toxic chemicals. Inspectors found chemicals improperly stored or labeled, and toxic substances improperly identified, stored, or used. Those two citations together indicate a kitchen where cleaning agents and food preparation were not adequately separated.
The restaurant also drew a citation for inadequate shellfish identification records. Don Ceviche's menu centers on raw and lightly cooked seafood, including ceviche preparations that are served without fully cooking the fish or shellfish. Without proper shellfish tags and sourcing records, there is no way to trace a contaminated batch back to its harvest area if customers become sick.
Rounding out the high-severity count: no consumer advisory posted for raw or undercooked foods, and improper handwashing technique by employees.
The five intermediate violations included improper sewage or wastewater disposal, multi-use utensils not properly cleaned, improper sanitizing solution or procedures, inadequate ventilation and lighting, and inadequate or improperly maintained toilet facilities.
What These Violations Mean
The combination of no employee health policy and employees not reporting illness symptoms is, in the language of outbreak investigation, a compounding failure. Norovirus spreads efficiently through a single sick food handler who keeps working. A written policy is the first mechanism that stops that chain. Without one, there is no documented standard employees are expected to follow, and no record that management acknowledged the risk.
Food from unapproved sources is a separate and serious concern at a restaurant built around raw seafood. Shellfish harvested from uncertified waters can carry Vibrio bacteria, hepatitis A, and norovirus. The inadequate shellfish identification records violation compounds this directly. If a diner becomes ill after eating ceviche and public health investigators need to trace the shellfish back to its harvest area, there is no paper trail to follow.
The absence of a consumer advisory for raw or undercooked foods matters acutely at a ceviche restaurant. Pregnant women, elderly diners, and people with compromised immune systems face elevated risk from raw shellfish and undercooked fish. State rules require that menus or table notices explicitly warn those customers. None was in place on May 26.
Improperly stored toxic chemicals found near a food preparation environment create the risk of chemical contamination of food or surfaces, which can cause acute poisoning independent of any bacterial or viral hazard. Two separate chemical-handling violations in one inspection suggest a systemic problem rather than a single oversight.
The Longer Record
Don Ceviche Peru and Mexico has five inspections on record and 85 total violations documented across those visits. That is not the record of a restaurant that had one bad day.
The most directly comparable inspection came on August 6, 2025, when the restaurant drew 10 high-severity and 4 intermediate violations, the same high-severity count as this month's inspection. Two days later, on August 7, a follow-up visit still found 5 high-severity and 2 intermediate violations outstanding. An October 2025 inspection found 4 high-severity and 2 intermediate violations.
The pattern across those inspections is consistent. High-severity violations have been present at every recorded visit. The restaurant has never been emergency-closed despite accumulating 85 violations over five inspections.
The earliest inspection on record, from August 2024, found only 1 high-severity and 1 intermediate violation. The numbers have climbed sharply since then, not improved.
Open for Business
A restaurant that handles raw shellfish, employs workers with no documented illness-reporting obligation, and draws simultaneous citations for unapproved food sources and improper chemical storage presents a layered set of risks to customers on any given visit.
State inspectors documented all of that at Don Ceviche Peru and Mexico on May 26, 2026.
The restaurant was not closed.