MIAMI, FL. State inspectors visiting Moxies at 900 S. Miami Ave. on June 12 cited the restaurant for failing to follow parasite destruction procedures, a violation that means fish, pork, or wild game on the menu could have reached customers with live parasites still viable inside.
That was one of six high-severity violations documented that afternoon. The restaurant was not closed.
What Inspectors Found
The parasite destruction citation is among the most specific food safety failures an inspector can document. State rules require that fish served raw or undercooked be frozen to a precise temperature for a defined period before service, a process that kills Anisakis worms and tapeworm larvae. When that protocol is skipped or improperly documented, there is no verification that parasites were destroyed.
Inspectors also found food contaminated by chemical, physical, or biological hazards, and separately cited toxic substances as improperly identified, stored, or used. Those two violations appearing in the same inspection raises a specific concern: chemicals or cleaners present near food, with no confirmed separation between the two.
The time-as-public-health-control violation adds another layer. When a restaurant uses time rather than temperature to keep food safe, it is required to track exactly when food was removed from temperature control and discard it at a set endpoint. Inspectors found that system was not being properly applied.
The restaurant was also cited for failing to post a consumer advisory for raw or undercooked items, and for improper handwashing technique among staff. All six violations were classified at the highest severity level. None were intermediate or basic.
What These Violations Mean
The parasite destruction failure is not a paperwork problem. Anisakis larvae in improperly handled fish can cause anisakiasis, an infection that produces severe abdominal pain and can require surgical removal of the parasite from the intestinal wall. Moxies serves raw and undercooked fish preparations. Without documented freezing protocols, customers who ordered those items on June 12 had no assurance the fish had been treated.
The contaminated food and toxic substance violations together describe a kitchen where chemicals were not adequately separated from food. Ingesting even trace amounts of sanitizers or cleaning agents can cause vomiting, chemical burns to the mouth and throat, or more serious injury depending on concentration.
The missing consumer advisory is specifically dangerous for pregnant women, elderly diners, and anyone with a compromised immune system. Those groups face the highest risk from raw protein and parasites. Without an advisory on the menu, they have no way to make an informed choice about what they order.
Improper handwashing technique is distinct from not washing hands at all. An employee who goes through the motions of washing without proper duration or method leaves pathogens on their hands, then transfers them to food. When that failure occurs in a kitchen that also has contaminated food and chemical misuse documented in the same visit, the cumulative risk is not additive. It compounds.
The Longer Record
The June 12 inspection was the fourteenth on record for this location. Across those 14 visits, inspectors have documented 60 total violations. The restaurant has never been emergency-closed.
The six high-severity violations logged this month are the most in a single inspection in the facility's recorded history, but they did not arrive without warning. The November 2025 inspection produced five high-severity violations and one intermediate. The March 2025 visit produced three high and one intermediate. Going back further, the November 2022 and February 2023 inspections each produced three high-severity violations alongside intermediate citations.
The February 2024 inspection recorded zero violations of any kind. That was the only clean visit in the record. Every other inspection going back to at least November 2022 has produced at least one high-severity citation.
The pattern across these inspections is not random fluctuation. High-severity violations have appeared at Moxies in seven of the last eight documented inspections. The June 2026 visit did not represent a sudden decline. It extended a record that had been building since at least 2022, now reaching its highest single-inspection violation count.
Still Open
Florida law gives inspectors the authority to order an emergency closure when conditions present an immediate threat to public health. Six high-severity violations, including parasite protocol failures, toxic substance misuse, and contaminated food, did not meet that threshold at Moxies on June 12.
The restaurant remained open for business that day.
State inspection records for this location show 60 violations accumulated over 14 inspections, no emergency closures, and a June 2026 visit that produced the highest single-day high-severity count in the facility's documented history.
It stayed open.