JACKSONVILLE, FL. Fuji 3 on San Jose Boulevard drew 10 high-severity violations during the week of October 8, more than any other restaurant inspected in Jacksonville that week, including citations for food from an unapproved or unknown source, no illness reporting system among employees, inadequate handwashing facilities, and improper use of time as a public health control.
That last violation matters at a sushi restaurant. When a facility uses time rather than temperature to manage food safety, inspectors require strict documentation and procedures. Without them, inspectors have no way to verify that raw fish and other high-risk items haven't spent too long in the temperature range where bacteria multiply fastest.
Fuji 3 also drew a citation for inadequate shell stock identification records, meaning inspectors could not confirm where the restaurant's shellfish came from or trace it back to a licensed harvester.
What Inspectors Found
China Kitchen on Collins Road drew eight high-severity violations, including food in poor condition or adulterated, no allergen awareness, no consumer advisory for raw or undercooked foods, and improperly stored toxic substances. A restaurant that handles food in poor condition and simultaneously lacks allergen awareness is operating with two compounding risks: a customer with a food allergy has no reliable way to know what they're eating, and the kitchen has no verified system to protect them.
The Subway on Southside Boulevard matched China Kitchen with eight high-severity violations of its own. Inspectors cited that location for food not cooked to the required minimum temperature, improperly stored toxic chemicals, no consumer advisory for undercooked foods, no allergen awareness, and failure to properly clean food contact surfaces. Subway is a sandwich chain, not a raw fish counter, which makes the undercooked food citation and the missing consumer advisory particularly notable.
Hardee's on San Jose Boulevard drew seven high-severity violations, including food from an unapproved or unknown source, food not cooked to the required minimum temperature, improperly stored toxic chemicals, and employees not reporting illness symptoms. Inspectors also cited the location for improper sewage or wastewater disposal, an intermediate violation that compounds the sanitation concerns.
Yashi Sushi on Deer Lake Drive West accumulated seven high-severity violations, including a citation for failing to follow parasite destruction procedures. For a restaurant serving raw fish, that is among the most direct food safety failures possible. Inspectors also cited Yashi Sushi for inadequate shell stock identification records and improperly stored toxic chemicals.
Tru by Hilton on Perimeter Industrial Parkway West drew seven high-severity violations, including no person in charge present or performing duties, employees not reporting illness symptoms, improper handwashing technique, food not cooked to the required minimum temperature, and no allergen awareness. A hotel breakfast operation with no active managerial control and no allergen protocols is serving a transient guest population, many of whom have no prior knowledge of the kitchen's practices.
Steak 'n Shake #583 on San Jose Boulevard also drew seven high-severity violations, among them inadequate shell stock identification records, which is an unusual citation for a burger chain, along with no consumer advisory, no allergen awareness, improperly stored toxic chemicals, employees not reporting illness, and no person in charge. Inspectors also noted improper sewage or wastewater disposal.
Subway #37825 on Wilson Boulevard drew six high-severity violations, including food in poor condition, parasite destruction procedures not followed, improperly stored toxic chemicals, and failure to follow required procedures for specialized processes. That last citation, covering smoking, curing, fermenting, or reduced-oxygen packaging, is an unusual finding for a franchise sandwich shop and raises questions about what processes were being attempted without proper controls.
Purple Roots on Southside Boulevard drew six high-severity violations, including food from an unapproved or unknown source, food in poor condition, inadequate shell stock identification records, parasite destruction procedures not followed, and no allergen awareness. Inspectors also noted improper sewage disposal and improperly cleaned multi-use utensils.
Uptown Market and Deli on North Main Street drew six high-severity violations, including food from an unapproved source, no consumer advisory for raw or undercooked foods, improperly stored toxic chemicals, and failure to properly clean food contact surfaces. Inspectors also cited inadequate ventilation and lighting and improper sewage disposal.
Jax Fish Shrimp and Chicken on Edgewood Avenue drew one high-severity violation for no person in charge, along with an intermediate citation for improper sewage or wastewater disposal.
Fast Eddy's Quick Mideast on Baymeadows Road drew two high-severity violations: employees not reporting illness symptoms and food contact surfaces not properly cleaned or sanitized.
904 Deli on Shad Road drew a single high-severity citation for employees not reporting illness symptoms. La Michoacana Al Natural on Beach Boulevard drew one high-severity citation for food in poor condition, mislabeled, or adulterated. Kazu Sushi Burrito on West Adams Street drew no high-severity violations but was cited for the intermediate violation of reusing single-use items.
What These Violations Mean
The illness reporting failures documented this week at Fuji 3, China Kitchen, Hardee's, Yashi Sushi, Tru by Hilton, Steak 'n Shake, Purple Roots, Uptown Market and Deli, Fast Eddy's, and 904 Deli are not paperwork violations. Norovirus, Hepatitis A, and Salmonella can all be transmitted when an infected food worker handles food without disclosing symptoms. A single sick employee at a busy lunch counter can expose dozens of customers in a single shift.
The food from unapproved source citations at Fuji 3, Hardee's, Purple Roots, and Uptown Market and Deli represent a traceability failure. When food enters a kitchen through an uninspected or unknown supply chain, there is no mechanism to issue a recall or identify the source if customers get sick. The USDA and FDA inspection systems exist precisely to create that trail.
Parasite destruction failures at Yashi Sushi, Subway #37825, and Purple Roots are among the most direct hazards in the week's data. Parasites including Anisakis in fish and Trichinella in pork are killed by verified freezing protocols or thorough cooking. Without documentation that those protocols were followed, customers consuming raw or undercooked items at those locations had no protection.
The toxic chemical storage violations at China Kitchen, Subway on Southside, Hardee's, Yashi Sushi, Steak 'n Shake, Subway on Wilson, Uptown Market and Deli, and Purple Roots are not hypothetical risks. Cleaning chemicals stored near or above food preparation surfaces can contaminate food through spills, aerosols, or mislabeled containers. Acute chemical poisoning from restaurant food is documented in the public health literature and is entirely preventable.
The Longer Record
Fuji 3 arrives at this week's 10 high-severity violations with 37 prior inspections on record, the second-highest count among facilities cited this week. That history does not show a kitchen encountering inspectors for the first time. It shows a kitchen that has been inspected repeatedly and still drew citations for foundational failures: no adequate handwashing infrastructure, no illness reporting, food from unverified sources.
Steak 'n Shake #583 has 36 prior inspections on record, the most of any facility in this week's data, and drew seven high-severity violations. Kazu Sushi Burrito, by contrast, has 44 prior inspections on record and drew no high-severity violations this week, only a single intermediate citation. The difference between those two records is the sharpest contrast in the week's data.
Tru by Hilton has only five prior inspections on record, making it among the newest facilities in this week's group, and it drew seven high-severity violations. A hotel food operation in its early inspection history, already accumulating citations for no managerial control, improper cooking temperatures, and no allergen awareness, is a facility that has not established basic compliance habits.
Subway #37825 on Wilson Boulevard has 20 prior inspections on record and drew a citation for parasite destruction procedures not followed. A Subway franchise is not a raw fish counter, and the presence of a parasite destruction citation alongside a specialized process violation suggests the location is operating outside its standard menu parameters without the safety controls those processes require. That question remains unanswered in the inspection record.
