ORLANDO, FL. One day after state inspectors forced Havana Bistro & Cafe on South Orange Blossom Trail to close for rodent activity, inspectors returned on August 22, 2026, and found six high-severity violations. The restaurant was allowed to remain open.
The violations documented that Sunday included toxic chemicals improperly stored or labeled, toxic substances improperly identified or used, food contact surfaces not properly cleaned or sanitized, an employee not reporting illness symptoms, improper hand and arm washing technique, and no person in charge present or performing duties. Six intermediate violations accompanied them.
What Inspectors Found
The two chemical violations stand out. Inspectors cited the facility separately for improperly stored or labeled toxic chemicals and for toxic substances improperly identified, stored, or used. That is two distinct high-severity citations in the same category on the same day, at a restaurant that had just reopened.
The person-in-charge violation compounds the rest. When no qualified manager is actively overseeing a kitchen, the violations that follow tend not to be coincidental. CDC data cited in state inspection records links absent managerial control to three times as many critical violations at comparable facilities.
The improper sewage or waste water disposal citation added a different dimension. Raw sewage creates fecal contamination risk throughout a facility, and the finding appeared the day after a rodent closure, in a kitchen where waste disposal was also cited as inadequate.
What These Violations Mean
The chemical storage violations are the most immediately dangerous finding from the August 22 inspection. Chemicals stored near or improperly labeled around food can cause acute poisoning without any visible sign of contamination. A customer would have no way to know.
The employee illness reporting violation is a direct outbreak risk. Food workers who do not report symptoms are the leading cause of multi-victim foodborne outbreaks. Norovirus, one of the most contagious pathogens transmitted through food handling, spreads person-to-person through exactly this gap.
Improper handwashing technique means that even when an employee washes their hands, pathogens remain. The violation is distinct from not washing at all, and in some ways harder to correct, because the behavior looks compliant while failing to eliminate the risk.
The inadequate cooling equipment citation matters because a refrigeration unit that cannot hold required temperatures allows food to enter the bacterial growth zone, between 41 and 135 degrees, without any visible sign. Customers eating food stored in that equipment would have no indication anything was wrong.
The Longer Record
The August 22 inspection was not an anomaly. State records show Havana Bistro & Cafe has been inspected 40 times, accumulating 631 total violations across that history.
The day before, on August 21, inspectors documented 6 high-severity and 7 intermediate violations and ordered the restaurant closed for rodent activity. It reopened August 22 and drew 6 more high-severity violations the same day.
The pattern extends well before this week. In March 2026, inspectors visited twice within eleven days: 8 high-severity violations on March 12 and 9 high-severity violations on March 23. In March 2025, the restaurant drew 10 high-severity violations, followed by 9 high-severity violations three weeks later in April. In September 2025, inspectors visited on consecutive days, documenting 10 high-severity violations on September 17 and 4 more on September 18.
Eight of the most recent inspections on record, covering roughly the past two years, show high-severity violation counts ranging from 4 to 10 per visit. The categories repeat: management failures, employee hygiene, food contact surface sanitation, and chemical handling.
Still Open
The prior emergency closure on August 21 was for rodent activity. The restaurant met state standards and was allowed to reopen. Twenty-four hours later, with six new high-severity violations documented by the same agency, it remained open again.
State records show 631 violations across 40 inspections at this address. The August 22 visit added 12 more to that total.
The restaurant on South Orange Blossom Trail was open for business.
