FORT LAUDERDALE, FL. Mixteca on NW 20th Avenue drew six high-severity violations in a single inspection during the week of August 15, the highest total of any restaurant inspectors visited in Fort Lauderdale that week, and the list included findings that inspectors treat as outbreak preconditions: no handwashing facilities, no employee health policy, workers not reporting illness symptoms, and food held under improper time controls.
Mixteca's six citations placed it at the top of a troubling week. Fifteen Fort Lauderdale restaurants accumulated high-severity violations between August 15 and August 21, 2026.
The Week's Worst Findings
Beehive Kitchen on N Andrews Avenue and Ozzie's Oceanfront Restaurant and Bar on North Fort Lauderdale Beach Boulevard each drew five high-severity citations. Beehive Kitchen's list included no person in charge present, no employee health policy, workers not reporting illness symptoms, improper handwashing technique, and no consumer advisory for raw or undercooked foods.
Ozzie's Oceanfront added a finding that separates it from most of the week's other violators: food from an unapproved or unknown source. The restaurant also failed on food not cooked to minimum required temperature, improper handwashing technique, an employee not reporting illness symptoms, and no person in charge on duty.
Carvel and Blimpie on West Commercial Boulevard was cited for food not cooked to the required minimum temperature, food in poor condition, improper handwashing technique, and no consumer advisory for raw or undercooked items, alongside three intermediate violations including inadequate cooling equipment.
Kousine Peruvian Kitchen on North Fort Lauderdale Beach Boulevard, a short distance from Ozzie's, drew four high-severity violations of its own: an employee not reporting illness symptoms, improper handwashing technique, food contact surfaces not properly cleaned or sanitized, and no consumer advisory for raw or undercooked foods.
Living Green Cafe on SE 17th Street was cited for inadequate shell stock identification records, food contact surfaces not properly cleaned or sanitized, an employee not reporting illness symptoms, and improper use of time as a public health control.
Thai Garlic and Sushi on Weston Road drew four high-severity violations with no intermediate violations at all: no person in charge present, an employee not reporting illness symptoms, inadequate handwashing facilities, and improper handwashing technique.
The Rest of the Week
Moonlite Diner on N Andrews Avenue was cited for food in poor condition, food contact surfaces not properly cleaned or sanitized, and toxic chemicals improperly stored or labeled, three high-severity findings during a single visit.
Smoke BBQ on NE 32nd Street drew three high-severity violations including food not cooked to the required minimum temperature, food in poor condition, and food contact surfaces not properly cleaned or sanitized.
Irie Jerk on NW 5th Way was cited for improper handwashing technique, no consumer advisory for raw or undercooked foods, and toxic chemicals improperly stored or labeled, plus three intermediate violations covering multi-use utensils, improper sanitizing solutions, and inadequate toilet facilities.
Doughboys Pizzeria and Italian Restaurant on SE 17th Street drew citations for no employee health policy, an employee not reporting illness symptoms, and inadequate shell stock identification records.
Wok'N'Lime on West Commercial Boulevard was cited for an employee not reporting illness symptoms, inadequate shell stock identification records, and food not cooked to the required minimum temperature.
McDonald's at 1201 SR 84 drew the same three high-severity violation types as Wok'N'Lime: employee not reporting illness symptoms, inadequate shell stock identification records, and food not cooked to the required minimum temperature.
Piman on NE 4th Avenue was cited for food contact surfaces not properly cleaned or sanitized and toxic chemicals improperly stored or labeled, alongside an intermediate violation for improper sewage or wastewater disposal.
Family Kitchen Restaurant and Catering on West Commercial Boulevard drew no high-severity violations, only a single intermediate citation for improper sewage or wastewater disposal.
What These Violations Mean
The handwashing failures documented this week at Mixteca, Beehive Kitchen, Ozzie's Oceanfront, Kousine Peruvian Kitchen, Thai Garlic and Sushi, Irie Jerk, Carvel and Blimpie, and Moonlite Diner represent two distinct but compounding problems. Inadequate handwashing facilities, cited at Mixteca and Thai Garlic and Sushi, mean the physical infrastructure for hygiene does not exist. Improper technique, cited at eight facilities, means that even where sinks are present, workers are not removing pathogens from their hands before handling food.
The illness-reporting failures are the more acute concern. Nine of the fifteen facilities this week were cited for employees not reporting illness symptoms, and four of those, Mixteca, Beehive Kitchen, Ozzie's Oceanfront, and Doughboys Pizzeria, also lacked any written employee health policy. Norovirus, the most common cause of foodborne illness outbreaks in restaurant settings, spreads through exactly this combination: a sick worker, no policy requiring them to stay home, and hands that are not properly washed before touching food.
Food from an unapproved source, cited at Ozzie's Oceanfront, carries a different kind of risk. When food bypasses USDA or FDA inspection channels, there is no traceability if a customer becomes ill. Investigators cannot identify the source, cannot issue a recall, and cannot determine how many other restaurants may have received the same product.
The shellfish traceability citations at Living Green Cafe, Doughboys Pizzeria, Wok'N'Lime, and McDonald's point to a record-keeping failure rather than a food quality finding, but the consequence is the same as the unapproved-source problem. Oysters, clams, and mussels consumed raw or lightly cooked are among the highest-risk foods in any kitchen. Without shell stock identification tags, there is no way to trace an illness back to a harvest location or lot.
The Longer Record
Piman on NE 4th Avenue has 51 prior inspections on record, the longest history of any facility cited this week, and still drew citations for improperly stored toxic chemicals and unsanitized food contact surfaces. Moonlite Diner carries 41 prior inspections and was cited this week for three high-severity violations including toxic chemicals near food and contaminated food contact surfaces.
Smoke BBQ has 34 prior inspections behind it. Family Kitchen Restaurant and Catering has 30. Wok'N'Lime has 29. These are not new businesses finding their footing.
Mixteca, the week's leader in high-severity violations, has 22 prior inspections on record. That is a shorter history than Piman or Moonlite Diner, but the severity of what inspectors found this week, six high-severity citations covering illness reporting, handwashing infrastructure, handwashing technique, food quality, and time controls simultaneously, suggests systemic failures rather than isolated lapses.
Ozzie's Oceanfront and Living Green Cafe are the newest operations in this week's data, with 10 and 12 prior inspections respectively. Ozzie's drew five high-severity violations including food from an unapproved source and food not cooked to minimum temperature, serious findings for a location that has not yet accumulated a long inspection history.
Kousine Peruvian Kitchen, also on North Fort Lauderdale Beach Boulevard, has 28 prior inspections and drew four high-severity violations this week. Two beach-corridor restaurants, steps apart, both cited in the same week for handwashing failures and illness-reporting gaps, is a pattern the records do not explain.
McDonald's at SR 84, with only 15 prior inspections, was cited for food not cooked to the required minimum temperature. That violation at a national chain operating under corporate food safety protocols, after 15 inspection cycles, is the finding in this week's data that the records leave without an explanation.
