HIALEAH, FL. State inspectors visiting Farandula Pizza and Restaurant on Palm Avenue on September 1 found the kitchen was receiving food from unapproved or unknown sources, a violation that means inspectors cannot trace where the ingredients came from, cannot verify they passed federal safety screening, and cannot track them if someone gets sick.
That was one of eight high-severity violations documented at the restaurant that day. The facility was not closed.
What Inspectors Found
The violations documented on September 1 clustered around a single, compounding failure: no one in charge was present or performing duties, and the absence showed throughout the kitchen. Inspectors cited inadequate handwashing by employees and inadequate handwashing facilities, meaning the physical infrastructure to wash hands properly either did not exist or was not accessible.
Food contact surfaces were not properly cleaned or sanitized. Multi-use utensils had not been properly cleaned. Sewage or wastewater was not being disposed of properly.
There was no written employee health policy and no evidence employees were reporting illness symptoms to management. There was also no consumer advisory posted for raw or undercooked menu items.
What These Violations Mean
The food-sourcing violation is among the most serious a restaurant can receive. When food arrives from an unapproved or unknown supplier, it has bypassed USDA and FDA inspection checkpoints. If a customer becomes ill after eating there, health investigators have no supply chain to trace, no lot numbers to pull, no way to determine whether other restaurants received the same contaminated batch.
The illness-reporting violations work together in a way that amplifies risk. A written employee health policy is the mechanism that tells workers when they are legally required to stay home. Without one, a cook with Norovirus has no formal instruction to leave the kitchen. The companion violation, employees not actually reporting symptoms, confirms the policy gap was not theoretical. Those two violations together describe a kitchen where a sick employee had no structured reason to stop working.
Improper sewage disposal at a food service facility is not a plumbing inconvenience. Raw sewage carries E. coli, Hepatitis A, and other pathogens. When waste water is not properly contained and removed, it can contaminate surfaces, equipment, and food preparation areas throughout the kitchen.
The absence of a person in charge performing duties is, in the inspection data, a predictor. CDC research cited in state inspection guidelines shows establishments without active managerial control accumulate critical violations at three times the rate of those with engaged supervision. On September 1 at Farandula, every other violation on the list is consistent with that finding.
The Longer Record
The September 1 inspection was the 32nd on record for this restaurant. Across those inspections, state records show 295 total violations. The facility has never been emergency-closed.
The inspection history shows a recurring pattern rather than an isolated bad day. On February 10, 2025, inspectors documented 7 high-severity and 4 intermediate violations. A follow-up three weeks later showed 0 high-severity violations, suggesting the restaurant can correct problems when pressed. But by September 19, 2025, high-severity violations had returned, with 4 cited that day. A follow-up three days later again showed 0.
The cycle repeated in 2026. On February 12, inspectors found 9 high-severity and 5 intermediate violations, the single worst inspection in the recent record. Seven months later, on September 1, the count was 8 high-severity and 3 intermediate. A follow-up inspection the very next day, September 2, found 3 high-severity and 2 intermediate violations still present.
That follow-up result matters. It means that even after inspectors had flagged eight high-severity problems the day before, three remained unresolved 24 hours later.
Still Open
Florida's emergency closure authority is triggered when inspectors determine a facility poses an immediate threat to public health. Eight high-severity violations, including food from an unknown source, no illness policy, improper sewage disposal, and unsanitary food contact surfaces, did not meet that threshold at Farandula on September 1.
The restaurant on Palm Avenue served customers that day, and the day after, with three high-severity violations still on the books.
