SEBASTIAN, FL. Employees at Gianna's Pizzeria on US Highway 1 were observed washing their hands incorrectly during a June 5 inspection, and in some cases not washing them at all before handling food, state records show. The restaurant collected six high-severity violations that day and was not ordered to close.
The inspection documented two separate handwashing failures: employees not washing their hands when required, and employees using improper technique when they did wash. State inspectors cited both as distinct high-priority violations, meaning the problem wasn't a single lapse but a pattern visible across multiple staff members during a single visit.
What Inspectors Found
Beyond the handwashing violations, inspectors cited food contact surfaces that were not properly cleaned or sanitized. Cutting boards, prep surfaces, and other equipment that touches food directly can transfer bacteria from one item to the next if they are not cleaned between uses.
Toxic chemicals were found improperly stored or labeled near food areas. Inspectors also cited no demonstrated allergen awareness among staff, meaning employees could not show they understood how to prevent cross-contact with the most common food allergens.
The restaurant was also cited for failing to post a consumer advisory for raw or undercooked foods. On the intermediate level, inspectors found improper sanitizing solution concentration, wiping cloths used incorrectly, and inadequate toilet facilities.
What These Violations Mean
The two handwashing violations together describe a kitchen where the most basic contamination barrier was not functioning. Improper handwashing is the single most documented pathway for spreading pathogens like norovirus, Salmonella, and E. coli directly from food handlers to customers. When employees skip handwashing entirely and also use incorrect technique when they do wash, neither behavior is an anomaly. Both were present at Gianna's Pizzeria on the same day.
The food contact surface violation compounds that risk. If hands are contaminated and surfaces are not properly sanitized, bacteria move freely across a kitchen. A cutting board used for raw ingredients and not properly cleaned between uses can transfer pathogens to every item prepared on it afterward.
The chemical storage violation carries a different category of risk. Improperly stored or unlabeled toxic chemicals near food create the possibility of acute poisoning through direct contamination, not just the slower risk of bacterial illness. This is not a paperwork violation.
The allergen awareness failure is one that affects a specific and identifiable group of customers. Roughly 32 million Americans live with food allergies. Allergic reactions send approximately 30,000 people to emergency rooms each year and kill hundreds. A staff that cannot demonstrate allergen awareness cannot reliably prevent cross-contact for a customer who discloses an allergy and trusts that the kitchen will act on it.
The Longer Record
Gianna's Pizzeria: Inspection History
The June 5 inspection was the 22nd on record for this location. Across those 22 inspections, state records show 147 total violations. The restaurant has never been emergency-closed.
The five-month gap between the January 2026 inspection and the June 2026 inspection is notable because the January visit produced eight high-severity violations, the worst single-visit count in the recent record. The June inspection followed with six. The restaurant has now accumulated 14 high-severity violations across two consecutive inspections this year alone.
High-severity violation counts of five or more appear in the records for 2021, 2022, 2024, 2026 January, and now 2026 June. That is five of the eight most recent inspections on record. The 2025 visit, which produced only two high-severity violations, stands as the exception in a history that otherwise shows persistent serious violations across multiple years.
The restaurant has never been cited for an emergency closure across all 22 inspections and 147 documented violations.
Open for Business
State inspectors left Gianna's Pizzeria on June 5 without ordering it closed. Customers who visited that day, or who visit before a follow-up inspection is completed, have no way of knowing from the restaurant itself what the records show.
The June 5 inspection found six high-severity violations at a restaurant with 147 violations across 22 inspections. It remained open.