JACKSONVILLE, FL. Broadway Deli on Belfort Road drew 11 high-severity violations in a single inspection during the week of September 10, the highest single-facility count among 15 Duval County restaurants cited for serious food safety failures that week. Inspectors found food in poor condition, food not cooked to required minimum temperatures, and no documentation that parasite destruction procedures had been followed for fish on the menu.
The deli also lacked an employee health policy and inspectors cited workers for not reporting illness symptoms and for improper handwashing technique. Shell stock identification records for shellfish were inadequate. Food contact surfaces were not properly cleaned or sanitized.
That is 11 high-severity violations at one address, in one visit.
The Violations
98 Forty East Bar and Bistro on Tapestry Park Circle and Iso Iso Ramen on San Jose Boulevard each drew 10 high-severity violations. At 98 Forty East, inspectors found no person in charge present or performing duties, no employee health policy, improper handwashing technique, food in poor condition, parasite destruction failures, unsanitized food contact surfaces, improper use of time as a public health control, and no consumer advisory for raw or undercooked foods.
Iso Iso Ramen's 10 violations included food from an unapproved or unknown source, a citation with direct implications for what ends up in a customer's bowl. Inspectors also cited inadequate shell stock records, no person in charge, no employee health policy, workers not reporting illness symptoms, improper handwashing, unsanitized food contact surfaces, and improper time controls.
Thai Green House on Southside Boulevard drew 9 high-severity violations, including two separate handwashing citations: employees not washing hands adequately and employees using improper technique. Inspectors also found food from an unapproved source, food in poor condition, no employee health policy, no person in charge, and unsanitized food contact surfaces.
Carrabba's Italian Grill on Skymarks Drive also reached 9 high-severity violations. The list included toxic chemicals improperly stored or labeled, food not cooked to required minimum temperatures, inadequate handwashing facilities, no consumer advisory for raw or undercooked items, and improper time controls. Inspectors also cited inadequate shell stock identification records and employees not reporting illness symptoms.
Dough Show on Bartram Park Boulevard was cited for 8 high-severity violations, including no approved potable water supply, food from an unapproved source, food not cooked to required temperatures, inadequate shell stock records, unsanitized food contact surfaces, no employee health policy, employees not reporting illness, and improper handwashing technique.
Arepa Please on Riverside Avenue drew 8 high-severity violations including two separate chemical safety citations: toxic chemicals improperly stored or labeled, and toxic substances improperly identified, stored, or used. Inspectors also found no person in charge, employees not reporting illness, improper handwashing, inadequate shell stock records, unsanitized food contact surfaces, and no consumer advisory for raw or undercooked foods.
Spliff's Gastropub on East Forsyth Street drew 7 high-severity violations, including inadequate handwashing facilities, improperly stored toxic chemicals, no consumer advisory, unsanitized food contact surfaces, and no person in charge. Inspectors also cited improper sewage or wastewater disposal as an intermediate violation.
Courtyard Jacksonville on Lantern Street had 7 high-severity violations, including two chemical safety citations, food not cooked to required temperatures, parasite destruction failures, inadequate shell stock records, unsanitized food contact surfaces, and no employee health policy.
Southern Coast Seafood on Monument Road was cited for 6 high-severity violations, including required procedures for specialized processes not followed, a citation that applies to operations like smoking, curing, or reduced-oxygen packaging. Inspectors also found no person in charge, no employee health policy, unsanitized food contact surfaces, improper time controls, and no consumer advisory. Improper sewage disposal appeared as an intermediate violation.
Gators BBQ on West Beaver Street drew 6 high-severity violations including food in poor condition, food not cooked to required temperatures, improper time controls, no consumer advisory, improperly stored toxic chemicals, and employees not reporting illness symptoms.
China Dragon on University Boulevard South was cited for 6 high-severity violations including food in poor condition, improperly stored toxic chemicals, unsanitized food contact surfaces, improper time controls, no employee health policy, and improper handwashing technique.
Perfect Rack Billiards on Edgewood Avenue South drew 6 high-severity violations including no allergen awareness demonstrated, parasite destruction failures, food not cooked to required temperatures, unsanitized food contact surfaces, no employee health policy, and improper handwashing technique.
La Marsa Grill and Seafood on University Boulevard West drew 1 high-severity violation for an employee not reporting illness symptoms, alongside an intermediate citation for improper sewage or wastewater disposal.
Five Star Pizza on San Jose Boulevard was the only facility among the 15 to record zero high-severity violations. Inspectors cited one intermediate violation for single-use items being improperly reused.
What These Violations Mean
The illness-reporting failures documented at Broadway Deli, Iso Iso Ramen, Thai Green House, Carrabba's, Dough Show, Arepa Please, Spliff's Gastropub, Gators BBQ, and La Marsa Grill represent one of the most direct routes to a multi-victim outbreak. A food worker infected with Norovirus can contaminate hundreds of meals before a single customer reports symptoms. The reason the state requires workers to report illness and managers to enforce that policy is that the alternative is a restaurant that knowingly or unknowingly serves as a transmission site.
The food from unapproved sources cited at Iso Iso Ramen, Thai Green House, and Dough Show carries a specific traceability problem. When food enters a kitchen from an uninspected supplier, there is no chain of documentation if a customer gets sick. Investigators cannot trace the product back to its origin, cannot determine whether other restaurants received the same batch, and cannot issue a recall. The violation is not just about the food itself; it is about what happens after.
Parasite destruction failures at Broadway Deli, 98 Forty East, Courtyard Jacksonville, and Perfect Rack Billiards apply to fish served raw or undercooked, such as sushi, ceviche, or lightly seared preparations. The required procedure is a specific freezing protocol that kills parasites including Anisakis and tapeworm. Without documentation that the protocol was followed, there is no way to confirm the fish on the plate was safe.
The chemical storage violations at Carrabba's, Arepa Please, Spliff's Gastropub, Courtyard Jacksonville, Gators BBQ, and China Dragon are among the fastest-acting hazards in a commercial kitchen. Cleaning chemicals stored near food preparation surfaces or mislabeled can cause acute poisoning. Unlike bacterial illness, which may take hours or days to appear, chemical contamination can affect a customer within minutes of ingestion.
The Longer Record
Dough Show on Bartram Park Boulevard has accumulated 32 prior inspections on record, the highest count among the facilities cited this week. That history, combined with 8 high-severity violations in this inspection, including no approved potable water supply and food from an unapproved source, suggests problems that have persisted across a substantial inspection record.
98 Forty East Bar and Bistro, Carrabba's Italian Grill, and Southern Coast Seafood each have 31 prior inspections on record. All three drew high-severity violations this week in categories that are not new or ambiguous: no person in charge, no employee health policy, food not cooked to temperature. These are foundational requirements, and all three facilities have had ample opportunity across three dozen inspections to address them.
Thai Green House has 29 prior inspections on record and drew 9 high-severity violations this week, including two separate handwashing citations. Iso Iso Ramen has 28 prior inspections and drew 10 high-severity violations, including food from an unapproved source. Both facilities have been inspected enough times that the violations documented this week cannot be attributed to unfamiliarity with state requirements.
La Marsa Grill and Seafood has only 10 prior inspections on record, the lowest count among all 15 facilities. Its single high-severity violation this week, an employee not reporting illness symptoms, is paired with an intermediate sewage disposal citation. Whether those two violations represent an early pattern or an isolated finding is something the next inspection will determine.
