KEY WEST, FL. Bagatelle Restaurant at 115 Duval Street drew eight high-severity violations in a single inspection last week, the most of any facility inspected across the Florida Keys during the week of September 21 through September 27, 2026, according to state records. Inspectors cited the restaurant for inadequate handwashing, food in poor condition, toxic chemicals stored improperly, shellfish without required traceability records, food not cooked to minimum temperatures, and the absence of a consumer advisory for raw or undercooked items.
The shellfish citation alone carries acute risk. Without proper shell stock identification records, there is no way to trace oysters, clams, or mussels back to their harvest source if a customer falls ill.
The Violations Across the Keys
Dante's Key West/Prime 951 at 951 Caroline Street collected seven high-severity violations, including food from an unapproved or unknown source, no employee health policy, an employee not reporting illness symptoms, and two separate chemical storage citations. Inspectors also documented improper sewage or wastewater disposal at the facility.
Food from unapproved sources is a specific concern at a waterfront tourist destination. When product bypasses USDA or FDA inspection, there is no supply-chain record to consult if customers later report illness.
Surly Siren Saloon at 310 Front Street also drew seven high-severity violations. Among them: food in poor condition, food not cooked to minimum temperature, toxic chemicals stored improperly, and a citation for improper use of time as a public health control. Inspectors also noted inadequate cooling or cold-holding equipment.
Main Kitchen and Tropicado & Perla at 430 Duval Street rounded out the cluster of seven-violation facilities on Key West. Inspectors cited the restaurant for employees not reporting illness symptoms, improper handwashing technique, food contact surfaces not properly sanitized, time as a public health control not properly used, no consumer advisory for raw items, improperly stored chemicals, and improper sewage or wastewater disposal.
Three of those four facilities sit within a six-block stretch of Key West's highest-traffic tourist corridor.
KeysBite at 99000 Overseas Highway in Key Largo also drew seven high-severity violations, including no person in charge present or performing duties, no employee health policy, an employee not reporting illness symptoms, food contact surfaces not properly sanitized, time as a public health control not properly used, no consumer advisory, and improperly stored chemicals. Inspectors also noted multi-use utensils not properly cleaned.
Mrs. Mac's Kitchen II at 99020 Overseas Highway, less than a quarter-mile from KeysBite, drew six high-severity violations. Those included food from an unapproved source, food not cooked to required minimum temperature, inadequate handwashing facilities, no allergen awareness demonstrated, and an employee not reporting illness symptoms. Inspectors also cited inadequate cooling equipment.
The allergen citation at Mrs. Mac's Kitchen II is notable. The facility serves a tourist clientele that includes visitors who may not know the local menu, and without demonstrated allergen awareness among staff, a customer with a life-threatening allergy has no reliable safety net.
Lazy Days Restaurant at 79867 Overseas Highway in Islamorada received five high-severity violations: an employee not reporting illness symptoms, improper handwashing technique, food not cooked to minimum temperature, time as a public health control not properly used, and no consumer advisory for raw or undercooked foods. Inspectors additionally cited improper sewage disposal and inadequate cooling equipment.
Tikka Bar at 509 Southard Street drew five high-severity violations with no intermediate violations alongside them, including food not cooked to minimum temperature, improper handwashing technique, food contact surfaces not properly sanitized, no employee health policy, and toxic chemicals stored improperly.
Duetto at 540 Greene Street was cited for five high-severity violations including food in poor condition, an employee not reporting illness symptoms, improper handwashing technique, food contact surfaces not properly sanitized, and improperly stored chemicals.
La Creperie French Cafe Key West at 801 Thomas Street drew five high-severity violations, among them food from an unapproved source, no employee health policy, an employee not reporting illness symptoms, food not cooked to minimum temperature, and toxic chemicals stored improperly.
Pepe's Cafe at 806 Caroline Street received five high-severity violations: no person in charge present, an employee not reporting illness symptoms, improper handwashing technique, time as a public health control not properly used, and no consumer advisory for raw or undercooked foods.
Sunset Grille and Raw Bar at 7 Knights Key Boulevard in Marathon drew four high-severity violations, including no employee health policy, an employee not reporting illness symptoms, improper handwashing technique, and no consumer advisory for raw or undercooked foods. Inspectors also documented improper sewage disposal and inadequate toilet facilities.
What These Violations Mean
The most common high-severity citation across all twelve facilities this week was employees not reporting illness symptoms. Nine of the twelve restaurants were cited for it. When a food worker with Norovirus or Salmonella continues handling food without reporting symptoms, every plate that leaves that kitchen is a potential transmission vehicle. In a tourist corridor where visitors eat one or two meals and then leave the area, an illness may not be linked back to its source for days, if at all.
The handwashing citations, documented at seven facilities including Lazy Days, Pepe's Cafe, Tikka Bar, Duetto, Sunset Grille, Main Kitchen and Tropicado and Perla, and Mrs. Mac's Kitchen II, compound that risk directly. Improper technique means pathogens remain on hands even when a worker makes an attempt to wash, turning the handwashing sink into a false checkpoint rather than an actual barrier.
The consumer advisory violations, found at eight facilities, carry a specific danger for tourists. A visitor unfamiliar with a restaurant's menu who orders a dish containing raw shellfish or undercooked protein has no way of knowing the risk without a posted advisory. Elderly visitors, pregnant travelers, and immunocompromised guests are the most acutely vulnerable.
The two food-from-unapproved-source citations, at Dante's Key West/Prime 951 and Mrs. Mac's Kitchen II and La Creperie French Cafe, represent a traceability gap that health officials cannot close after the fact. If a guest becomes ill, investigators need supplier records to identify contaminated product and issue a recall. Without those records, the investigation stops before it starts.
The Longer Record
Several of the facilities cited this week are established locations with histories that stretch back years in state inspection records. Pepe's Cafe on Caroline Street, one of Key West's oldest continuously operating restaurants, has accumulated a substantial inspection record, making this week's five high-severity violations, including no person in charge and no consumer advisory for raw foods, a continuation of documented scrutiny rather than a first-time anomaly.
Bagatelle Restaurant on Duval Street and Lazy Days Restaurant in Islamorada are similarly long-standing tourist-area institutions with prior inspection histories that predate the current ownership environment. Bagatelle's eight high-severity violations this week, including the shellfish traceability failure, represent the kind of systemic gap that inspection records can track across years.
Mrs. Mac's Kitchen II on the Overseas Highway in Key Largo has a sibling location nearby, and both are well-known stops for Keys visitors. The food-from-unapproved-source citation at Mrs. Mac's Kitchen II this week is the category of violation that tends to recur when supplier relationships are not periodically audited.
The four facilities on or immediately adjacent to Duval Street, Bagatelle, Surly Siren Saloon, Main Kitchen and Tropicado and Perla, and Tikka Bar, collectively drew 27 high-severity violations in a single inspection week. That block of findings, concentrated in the highest foot-traffic zone in the Keys, did not include a single consumer advisory citation that was resolved during the inspection period the records cover.
