MIAMI, FL. Inspectors visiting Los Roques Gourmet and Grill on NW 58th Street this week documented 11 high-severity violations in a single visit, including food sourced from unapproved or unknown suppliers and food described as being in poor condition or adulterated. That combination, food of unknown origin that is already degraded, is among the most direct routes to a serious foodborne illness outbreak.
Fifteen Miami-Dade restaurants were cited for high-severity violations during the week of September 28 through October 4, 2026. The findings ranged from improperly stored toxic chemicals at a Brickell hotel to sick employees working without any reporting policy at a Kendall grill.
The Week's Worst Findings
Los Roques also drew violations for inadequate handwashing, improper hand and arm washing technique, no employee health policy, and failure to properly use time as a public health control. Inspectors additionally cited the facility for failing to follow parasite destruction procedures and for improperly cleaned food contact surfaces.
Flora Plant Kitchen on NE 4th Court accumulated 10 high-severity violations, including food from unapproved or unknown sources and food in poor condition. Inspectors also cited the plant-based kitchen for employees not reporting illness symptoms, improper handwashing technique, improperly cleaned food contact surfaces, toxic chemicals stored or labeled incorrectly, and no consumer advisory for raw or undercooked foods.
La Brasa Kendall on SW 72nd Street drew 9 high-severity violations. Among them: no employee health policy, employees not reporting illness symptoms, improper handwashing technique, no allergen awareness demonstrated, and toxic chemicals improperly stored. Inspectors also cited the facility for failing to use time properly as a public health control and for offering raw or undercooked items without a consumer advisory.
Cote Korean Steak House on NE 2nd Avenue was cited for 9 high-severity violations, including no person in charge present or performing duties, no employee health policy, employees not reporting illness, food not cooked to required minimum temperature, and toxic chemicals improperly stored. Inspectors also noted improper handwashing technique and improperly cleaned food contact surfaces.
La Perla El Rincon Del Mar on SW 152nd Street received 9 high-severity violations, including inadequate shell stock identification records, no allergen awareness, no employee health policy, and employees not reporting illness. Inspectors found improper handwashing technique, improperly cleaned food contact surfaces, toxic chemicals stored incorrectly, and no consumer advisory for raw or undercooked foods.
Doma on NE 26th Street also drew 9 high-severity violations. The inspector documented no person in charge present, no employee health policy, employees not reporting illness, food not cooked to minimum required temperature, and toxic chemicals improperly stored. Improper handwashing technique, improperly cleaned food contact surfaces, and no consumer advisory were also cited.
Chicken House No. 4 on NW 20th Street received 9 high-severity violations including inadequate handwashing facilities, employees not reporting illness, food not cooked to minimum temperature, and food described as being in poor condition. Inspectors also cited improper handwashing technique, improperly cleaned food contact surfaces, improper use of time as a public health control, and no consumer advisory.
Caribe Restaurant on NW 27th Avenue drew 8 high-severity violations, including no person in charge, no employee health policy, employees not reporting illness, inadequate handwashing, and toxic chemicals improperly stored. Inspectors also cited improperly cleaned food contact surfaces, improper time control, and no consumer advisory, and found no intermediate violations alongside those 8 high-severity citations.
Novotel Miami Brickell on SW 1st Avenue was cited for 7 high-severity violations. Among the most notable: employees not reporting illness symptoms, inadequate shell stock identification records, and food not cooked to required minimum temperature. The hotel restaurant also drew violations for inadequate handwashing, improper handwashing technique, improper time control, and no consumer advisory for raw or undercooked items.
Cerro Negro Restaurant on West Flagler Street was cited for 6 high-severity violations, including two separate chemical-related citations: toxic chemicals improperly stored or labeled, and toxic substances improperly identified, stored, or used. Inspectors also found failure to follow parasite destruction procedures, improperly cleaned food contact surfaces, improper time control, and no consumer advisory.
Luis Galindo Latin American 2 on SW 24th Street drew 5 high-severity violations, including toxic chemicals improperly stored, no consumer advisory, food contact surfaces not properly cleaned, improper handwashing technique, and failure to follow parasite destruction procedures.
Freshco Fish Market on SW 122nd Avenue received 5 high-severity violations, including two chemical-related citations and food described as being in poor condition or adulterated. Inspectors also cited improperly cleaned food contact surfaces and no consumer advisory.
Fuddruckers on NW 19th Street drew 4 high-severity violations, including two chemical violations, improper handwashing technique, and no consumer advisory.
Mi Tierra Bar and Kitchen on SW 56th Street was cited for 3 high-severity violations: improperly cleaned food contact surfaces, food not cooked to minimum required temperature, and toxic chemicals improperly stored.
What These Violations Mean
Food from unapproved or unknown sources, cited at Los Roques Gourmet and Flora Plant Kitchen, means that the supply chain for that food bypassed federal inspection. If someone gets sick, investigators cannot trace the product back to its origin. That traceability gap is the difference between a contained outbreak and one that spreads before health officials can identify the source.
The cluster of employee illness violations across La Brasa Kendall, Caribe Restaurant, Cote Korean Steak House, Doma, Chicken House No. 4, La Perla El Rincon Del Mar, Novotel Miami Brickell, and Flora Plant Kitchen tells a related story. When there is no written employee health policy and no requirement to report symptoms, a worker with norovirus or salmonella has no formal obligation to stay home. Norovirus can infect a customer with fewer than 20 viral particles. A single sick employee on a busy Friday night can expose dozens of diners before anyone knows there is a problem.
The absence of a person in charge, documented at Caribe Restaurant, Cote Korean Steak House, and Doma, compounds every other violation. CDC data shows facilities without active managerial oversight accumulate critical violations at three times the rate of those with engaged management. When no one is accountable for the kitchen, handwashing breaks down, temperature logs go unchecked, and chemical storage gets ignored.
The dual chemical violations at Cerro Negro Restaurant and Freshco Fish Market are worth separating from each other. Improperly labeled chemicals can be mistaken for food-safe products and used on surfaces or equipment. Improperly stored chemicals placed near food create a direct contamination path. Both failures appeared in the same inspection at each of those two locations.
The Longer Record
Several of this week's worst performers have substantial inspection histories behind them. Cerro Negro Restaurant has 38 prior inspections on record, making this week's 6 high-severity findings part of a long-running pattern. Fuddruckers, with 37 inspections on record, drew 4 high-severity violations including two separate chemical citations. La Perla El Rincon Del Mar has 34 prior inspections and still arrived this week without an employee health policy, without allergen awareness, and without adequate shell stock records.
Luis Galindo Latin American 2 carries 33 prior inspections. Chicken House No. 4 also has 33. Tariacuri, the one facility this week with zero high-severity violations, has 32 inspections on record, suggesting its longer history may have shaped more consistent compliance. Mi Tierra Bar and Kitchen and Los Roques Gourmet each have 30 prior inspections, yet Los Roques produced the week's highest single-facility violation count.
The newer facilities present a different concern. Flora Plant Kitchen has only 7 inspections on record and already accumulated 10 high-severity violations in a single visit, including food from unapproved sources and employees not reporting illness. Cote Korean Steak House has 11 prior inspections and drew 9 high-severity violations. Both are early in their inspection histories and already showing serious gaps.
La Brasa Kendall, with 20 inspections on record, was cited for failing to demonstrate allergen awareness, a violation that carries particular weight given that allergic reactions send 30,000 Americans to emergency rooms annually. That citation, combined with no employee health policy and employees not reporting illness at a facility still relatively early in its inspection history, is a combination that has not yet resolved itself across 20 visits.
