MIAMI, FL. In April 2026, state inspectors walked into Hi Pot on SW 107th Avenue and documented that food was not being cooked to the required minimum temperature, that no consumer advisory existed for raw or undercooked items, and that shellfish on the menu could not be traced to its source if a customer got sick. The restaurant was not closed.
The April 13 inspection produced nine high-severity violations and seven intermediate ones, a total of 16 citations from a single visit. The high-severity findings alone covered undercooking, chemical storage failures, improper handwashing technique, no employee health policy, and a breakdown in the specialized processes the restaurant relies on for its hot pot service.
What Inspectors Found
The undercooking violation is the most direct threat to anyone who ate at Hi Pot that day. Salmonella in poultry survives below 165 degrees Fahrenheit. At a hot pot restaurant, where customers cook their own proteins in shared broth, the responsibility for reaching safe temperatures is split between the kitchen and the table, and the inspection record does not specify which side of that equation failed.
The shellfish citation compounds the risk. Without adequate shell stock identification records, there is no way to trace oysters, clams, or mussels back to their harvest location if a customer reports illness. That traceability is the entire mechanism by which health officials identify and contain shellfish-linked outbreaks.
Toxic chemicals were found improperly stored or labeled. At a restaurant where open pots of broth sit on table burners, a mislabeled or misplaced chemical near food preparation areas is not a paperwork problem.
The intermediate violations added a second layer of concern. Improper sewage or wastewater disposal was cited, along with multi-use utensils that had not been properly cleaned, a sanitizing solution that was not at the correct concentration, and single-use items being reused. Equipment was found in poor repair, ventilation and lighting were inadequate, and toilet facilities did not meet standards.
What These Violations Mean
The combination of no employee health policy and improper handwashing technique is particularly dangerous in a restaurant setting. A written health policy is the mechanism that keeps a sick employee out of the kitchen. Without one, there is no documented standard requiring a worker with Norovirus symptoms to stay home. And if that worker does come in, improper handwashing technique means pathogens remain on hands even when a washing attempt is made.
The "time as a public health control" violation matters specifically for hot pot service. When temperature control is impractical for certain foods, state rules allow operators to use time instead, but only under a strict written procedure that tracks exactly how long food has been in the temperature danger zone between 41 and 135 degrees. That procedure was not properly followed at Hi Pot on April 13.
The specialized process violation is similarly specific to this type of restaurant. Hot pot operations involve processes that require precise written plans approved by regulators. When those procedures break down, the safety margin built into the approval process disappears entirely.
Improperly cleaned multi-use utensils develop bacterial biofilms within 24 hours. Those biofilms are resistant to standard cleaning and can transfer bacteria to every dish that touches the surface afterward.
The Longer Record
The April 13 inspection did not happen in isolation. Hi Pot has 30 inspections on record and 260 total violations documented over its history. The facility was emergency-closed once before, in August 2021, for roach activity. It reopened the following day.
The inspection pattern since 2023 shows persistent high-severity citations. Inspectors found six high-severity violations in January 2026, seven in December 2024, six in February 2024, and six again the day before that, on February 26, 2024. The two-day stretch in February 2024 produced 12 high-severity violations across consecutive visits.
The April 13, 2026 inspection, with its nine high-severity citations, is the worst single-day total in the recent record. The follow-up visit the next day, April 14, still found five high-severity violations and three intermediate ones.
That means inspectors returned 24 hours after documenting nine high-severity violations and found five more.
Open for Business
State inspectors have the authority to order an emergency closure when they determine a facility poses an immediate threat to public health. After the April 13 inspection at Hi Pot, with nine high-severity violations including undercooking, shellfish with no traceability, and improperly stored toxic chemicals, that determination was not made.
The restaurant remained open.