OCALA, FL. State inspectors visiting Hacienda Colombiana 3 at 4551 SE Maricamp Road on April 29 found food sourced from unapproved or unknown suppliers sitting in an active restaurant kitchen, one of six high-severity violations documented that day. The restaurant was not closed.
Food from unapproved sources means the supply chain bypassed USDA and FDA inspection entirely. If someone got sick after eating there, investigators would have no records to trace.
What Inspectors Found
The inspection also cited food in poor condition, described in state records as spoiled, contaminated, mislabeled, or adulterated. That violation sits alongside the unapproved-source finding as a direct food quality hazard, not an administrative paperwork issue.
Toxic substances were found improperly identified, stored, or used. Chemicals stored or labeled incorrectly in a working kitchen create a direct route for contamination of food or food prep surfaces.
Food contact surfaces, the cutting boards, prep tables, and equipment that touch ingredients directly, were cited as not properly cleaned or sanitized. Inspectors also cited improper handwashing technique, meaning employees made an attempt to wash their hands but did so incorrectly, leaving pathogens on their hands before returning to food preparation.
The sixth high-severity violation was the absence of any written employee health policy. Without one, there is no formal mechanism requiring sick workers to stay home or report symptoms to a manager before handling food.
What These Violations Mean
The unapproved-source violation is the one that removes the safety net entirely. Licensed food suppliers in Florida are subject to USDA and FDA inspections, and their records are traceable if customers report illness. When a restaurant buys from an unknown or unapproved source, that traceability disappears. Listeria, Salmonella, and E. coli can all be present in food that looks and smells normal.
The food contact surface violation compounds the risk. Bacteria transferred from a contaminated cutting board or prep surface can reach every dish prepared on that surface for hours before the next cleaning. When handwashing technique is also cited on the same visit, the two violations work together: workers who do not fully decontaminate their hands return to surfaces that were not fully decontaminated either.
The toxic substance violation is distinct from the biological risks above. Cleaning chemicals, pesticides, and other toxins stored near or above food, or stored in unlabeled containers, can contaminate food directly. This is not a slow-developing bacterial risk, it is immediate.
The absence of an employee health policy means there is no written rule at Hacienda Colombiana 3 requiring a worker with Norovirus symptoms to report their condition or stay off the line. Norovirus is responsible for an estimated 20 million cases of illness in the United States each year, and food handlers are a primary transmission route.
The Longer Record
The April 29 inspection was the sixth on record for Hacienda Colombiana 3. Across those six visits, inspectors have documented 50 total violations.
The pattern is not a recent development. The restaurant's first two inspections, in May and November 2024, produced no high-severity violations and just one intermediate finding combined. Then something changed. The July 2025 inspection produced eight high-severity violations. The January 2026 inspection produced seven high-severity violations and three intermediate ones. The February 2026 inspection produced ten high-severity violations and two intermediate ones.
April's six high-severity violations represent the fourth consecutive inspection with serious findings. The February 2026 visit, just 85 days before this one, was the worst on record with ten high-severity citations.
The restaurant has never been emergency-closed. Not after ten high-severity violations in February. Not after eight in July 2025. Not after six on April 29.
Still Open
Florida's emergency closure authority is triggered when an inspector determines an immediate threat to public health exists. The six high-severity violations documented at Hacienda Colombiana 3 on April 29, including food from an untraceable source, chemicals improperly stored in an active kitchen, and unsanitized food contact surfaces, did not result in that determination.
The restaurant remained open after the inspection.
That is the same outcome that followed ten high-severity violations in February, eight in July, and seven in January. Fifty violations across six inspections, and the doors have stayed open every time.