FORT MYERS, FL. Tap 42 on South Cleveland Avenue drew seven high-severity violations during the week of September 14, the most of any restaurant inspected in Fort Myers that week, with inspectors documenting food from unapproved or unknown sources, failed parasite destruction procedures, improper use of time as a public health control, and no person in charge present or performing duties.
That combination — unverifiable food sourcing, no management oversight, and parasite controls ignored — puts Tap 42 at the top of a troubling week for Fort Myers dining. Fourteen other facilities also drew high-severity citations, and one restaurant was shut down entirely.
The Week's Worst Findings
Bimini Bait Shack at Harbour Pointe Drive drew six high-severity violations, including food not cooked to the required minimum temperature, food from unapproved sources, employees not reporting illness symptoms, and toxic chemicals improperly stored or labeled. Inspectors also cited the waterfront restaurant for providing no consumer advisory for raw or undercooked foods.
Morning Bloom on Daniels Parkway also reached six high-severity violations. Inspectors found food from unapproved sources, food in poor condition or adulterated, inadequate shell stock identification records, no employee health policy, employees not reporting illness symptoms, and improper use of time as a public health control.
Little Sicily on Six Mile Commercial Court was cited for five high-severity violations, among them inadequate handwashing facilities, improper handwashing technique, inadequate shell stock identification records, food contact surfaces not properly cleaned or sanitized, and toxic chemicals improperly stored. Inspectors also flagged improper sewage or wastewater disposal and improperly cleaned multi-use utensils.
Pao de Minas Bakery on Winkler Avenue drew five high-severity violations including no employee health policy, employees not reporting illness symptoms, improper handwashing technique, inadequate shell stock records, and no consumer advisory for raw or undercooked foods. For a bakery, the shellfish traceability and consumer advisory citations are particularly notable.
Shell Point Village Palm Grill on Woodsong Lane received five high-severity violations: no person in charge, no employee health policy, employees not reporting illness symptoms, food from unapproved sources, and food not cooked to the required minimum temperature. The facility also had improper sewage disposal and inadequate toilet facilities cited.
The Closure and the Other Violations
On September 17, the Florida Department of Business and Professional Regulation ordered Nardette Take Out Restaurant at 3082 Fowler Street shut down for roach activity. It was the only emergency closure in Fort Myers during the inspection week.
Citrola's Italian Grill on McGregor Boulevard drew four high-severity violations, including no person in charge, no employee health policy, food from unapproved sources, and no consumer advisory for raw or undercooked foods. Inspectors also found multi-use utensils not properly cleaned and single-use items being reused.
Taco Vazquez Inc on South Tamiami Trail received four high-severity violations: improper handwashing technique, toxic substances improperly identified or stored, no allergen awareness demonstrated, and required procedures for specialized processes not followed. That last citation, covering techniques like smoking, curing, fermenting, or reduced-oxygen packaging, signals that food transformation processes at the restaurant were not being executed with the required safety controls in place.
Snappers Comedy Club on College Parkway was cited for inadequate handwashing by food employees, parasite destruction procedures not followed, food contact surfaces not properly cleaned or sanitized, and toxic chemicals improperly stored or labeled.
Leeman Holdings Group on Fowler Street drew four high-severity violations including employees not reporting illness symptoms, toxic chemicals improperly stored, toxic substances improperly identified or stored, and no allergen awareness demonstrated.
Twisted Crab Seafood and Bar on Cleveland Avenue received four high-severity violations: no employee health policy, employees not reporting illness symptoms, food in poor condition or adulterated, and food contact surfaces not properly cleaned or sanitized.
Mellow Mushroom on Daniels Parkway was cited for employees not reporting illness symptoms, food not cooked to required minimum temperature, and no consumer advisory for raw or undercooked foods.
Fancy's Southern Cafe on Salrose Lane drew three high-severity violations: no employee health policy, food contact surfaces not properly cleaned or sanitized, and toxic chemicals improperly stored or labeled. Inspectors also cited improper sewage disposal and inadequate ventilation.
Breakfast Bros NY Cafe on Metro Parkway received one high-severity citation for food in poor condition, mislabeled, or adulterated, along with an intermediate citation for improper sewage or wastewater disposal.
Perkins Restaurant and Bakery on South Tamiami Trail was the standout among the group, drawing zero high-severity violations and only a single intermediate citation for inadequate ventilation and lighting.
What These Violations Mean
The food-from-unapproved-sources citation, documented at Tap 42, Bimini Bait Shack, Morning Bloom, Shell Point Village Palm Grill, and Citrola's Italian Grill, means that if a customer became ill after eating at one of those restaurants, investigators would have no reliable supply chain to trace. Food from unapproved sources bypasses USDA and FDA inspections, meaning it could harbor Listeria, Salmonella, or other pathogens with no prior screening.
The illness-reporting failures documented at Bimini Bait Shack, Morning Bloom, Pao de Minas Bakery, Shell Point Village Palm Grill, Twisted Crab, Mellow Mushroom, Leeman Holdings, and Tap 42 are particularly acute. A food worker shedding Norovirus before symptoms fully appear can contaminate dozens of servings in a single shift. Without an employee health policy, there is no mechanism to pull that worker off the line.
Parasite destruction failures at Tap 42 and Snappers Comedy Club represent a different category of risk. When fish is served without proper freezing protocols, parasites including Anisakis, a roundworm that can embed in the stomach lining, can survive to the plate. This is not a theoretical hazard: it is why the state requires documented freezing logs for certain raw or undercooked fish preparations.
Toxic chemicals improperly stored or labeled, flagged at Bimini Bait Shack, Little Sicily, Fancy's Southern Cafe, Snappers, and Leeman Holdings, is a violation that can produce immediate harm rather than illness that develops over hours or days. A chemical stored near food, or mislabeled so a worker reaches for the wrong container, can contaminate a meal before it ever reaches temperature danger zones.
The Longer Record
Leeman Holdings Group has 44 prior inspections on record, the most of any facility in this week's data, and still drew four high-severity violations this week including dual toxic-substance citations and no allergen awareness. That volume of prior inspections without apparent resolution of chemical storage and allergen protocols is the most significant pattern in the week's data.
Taco Vazquez Inc has 32 prior inspections on record. Fancy's Southern Cafe has 34. Both drew high-severity violations this week, and both have inspection histories long enough that the violations documented now reflect sustained patterns rather than isolated lapses.
Bimini Bait Shack has 27 prior inspections and Snappers Comedy Club also has 27. Both were cited this week for parasite destruction failures and toxic chemical storage problems, violations that require deliberate procedural choices to correct.
Pao de Minas Bakery has only 5 prior inspections on record, the fewest of any facility in this week's data, yet drew five high-severity violations. For a facility still early in its inspection history, accumulating citations for no employee health policy, improper handwashing, and shellfish traceability failures suggests foundational food safety practices were not in place from the start.
Leeman Holdings Group's four high-severity violations this week, across 44 documented inspections, remain unresolved in the state record.
