ST. PETERSBURG, FL. Inspectors visiting Floribbean Eatery and Catering on Central Avenue on September 15 found toxic chemicals improperly stored or labeled near food, one of six high-severity violations documented during the inspection. The restaurant was not emergency-closed.
The six high-severity citations placed Floribbean in the company of restaurants that are routinely shuttered on the spot. State inspectors did not pull the license.
What Inspectors Found
The chemical storage citations were doubled: inspectors cited both improper storage or labeling of toxic chemicals and improper identification, storage, or use of toxic substances as separate high-severity violations. That combination points to a kitchen where chemicals were present near food without clear labels or safe separation.
Inspectors also cited food in poor condition, described in state records as spoiled, contaminated, mislabeled, or adulterated. A separate high-severity violation documented that time was not being properly used as a public health control, meaning food was allowed to sit in the temperature danger zone between 41 and 135 degrees without the required tracking or disposal procedures in place.
The restaurant had no consumer advisory posted for raw or undercooked foods, the fifth high-severity violation. That notice is required whenever a menu includes items like undercooked eggs, raw shellfish, or rare meat. Without it, customers who are elderly, pregnant, or immunocompromised have no way to know they are ordering something that carries elevated risk.
Improper handwashing technique rounded out the six. An employee who goes through the motions of washing hands but uses incorrect method can still transfer pathogens directly to food.
The seven intermediate violations included improper sewage or wastewater disposal, multi-use utensils that were not properly cleaned, faulty sanitizing procedures, inadequate cooling and cold holding equipment, inadequate ventilation and lighting, improper waste disposal, and improper use of wiping cloths.
What These Violations Mean
The chemical violations are the kind that inspectors treat as acute hazards. When toxic substances are stored near food without proper labeling or physical separation, a single mislabeled container or a spill can contaminate an entire prep surface or batch of food. Customers would have no way to detect it. Floribbean received two separate citations in this category on the same inspection.
The time-control violation compounds the temperature problem. When a restaurant uses time rather than refrigeration to keep food safe, the rules require strict documentation and disposal at set intervals. Inspectors found that system was not being followed here. Combined with the intermediate citation for inadequate cooling equipment, the inspection record describes a kitchen that lacked both the mechanical tools and the procedural discipline to keep food out of the bacterial growth zone.
Improperly cleaned multi-use utensils and faulty sanitizer concentration are not minor housekeeping issues. Bacterial biofilms can form on utensil surfaces within 24 hours of inadequate cleaning and resist standard washing. Sanitizer that is too weak leaves those same pathogens alive on prep surfaces. Both violations were documented at Floribbean on September 15.
The sewage violation is the most stark on the intermediate list. Improper wastewater disposal creates a direct fecal contamination pathway through a food preparation facility. That citation, combined with improper waste disposal attracting pests, describes conditions that go well beyond a bad inspection day.
The Longer Record
Floribbean Eatery: Inspection History
The September 15 inspection was not an outlier. State records show 17 inspections on file for Floribbean Eatery and Catering, with 128 total violations accumulated across those visits.
Of the eight most recent inspections in the record, every single one included at least one high-severity violation. Three of those inspections, including the most recent, produced seven or more combined high and intermediate violations. The March 2026 inspection produced seven high-severity citations. The August 2025 inspection also produced seven high-severity citations.
The restaurant has never been emergency-closed. Not once across 17 inspections and 128 violations.
September's inspection brought the highest combined violation count in the available record: 13 citations total, six of them high-severity. The restaurant on Central Avenue was open for business when inspectors left.
