COCOA BEACH, FL. A state inspection of New China on North Atlantic Avenue on April 22 found the restaurant operating without an approved potable water supply, one of seven high-severity violations documented that day, and inspectors did not close it.
Water used in a food establishment touches nearly every surface, every utensil, every ingredient. Without a verified potable source, there is no way to know what was in it.
What Inspectors Found
The April 22 inspection produced ten violations in total: seven high-severity and three intermediate. Beyond the water supply citation, inspectors found that employees were not reporting symptoms of illness, that handwashing technique was improper, and that food contact surfaces were not properly cleaned or sanitized.
Toxic chemicals were stored or labeled improperly, putting them in proximity to food handling areas. No allergen awareness was demonstrated by staff, a violation that carries direct consequences for customers with food allergies. And no person in charge was present or performing supervisory duties during the inspection.
Three intermediate violations rounded out the report: multi-use utensils not properly cleaned, inadequate cooling and cold-holding equipment, and inadequate ventilation and lighting.
A follow-up inspection two days later, on April 24, found zero high-severity and zero intermediate violations.
What These Violations Mean
The potable water violation is not a paperwork problem. Non-potable water can carry E. coli, Cryptosporidium, Giardia, and Legionella. In a kitchen, water contacts food directly, runs over surfaces where food is prepared, and fills the sinks used for handwashing. A compromised water source can contaminate an entire operation simultaneously.
The employee illness reporting violation compounds that risk. Food workers who do not report symptoms are the leading cause of multi-victim outbreaks, particularly norovirus, which spreads person-to-person and survives on surfaces. Combined with the improper handwashing technique citation at New China, the inspection describes a kitchen where pathogens on workers' hands are not being reliably removed, and where sick employees may have no formal obligation to stay away from food.
The allergen awareness violation is a separate category of danger. Food allergies affect 32 million Americans, and reactions send roughly 30,000 people to emergency rooms each year. A staff that cannot demonstrate allergen awareness cannot reliably answer a customer's question about what is in a dish, and cannot be expected to prevent cross-contact during preparation.
The absence of a person in charge during the inspection ties many of these findings together. CDC data shows establishments without active managerial control accumulate critical violations at three times the rate of those with engaged supervision. On April 22, New China had neither.
The Longer Record
The April 22 inspection was not an outlier. State records show New China has been inspected 35 times, accumulating 254 violations across that history. The restaurant has never been emergency-closed.
The pattern in recent years is consistent. Inspectors found four high-severity violations in October 2024, three high-severity violations in both June 2024 and January 2024, and four more in August 2023. The December 2025 inspection produced three high-severity and one intermediate violation. The cycle has repeated across multiple inspection cycles without triggering a closure.
What is notable about April 22 is the volume: seven high-severity violations in a single visit is the highest single-inspection count in the recent record provided. Prior inspections in that same stretch typically produced three or four. The jump to seven, including a water supply violation and a complete absence of managerial oversight, represents a significant deterioration from an already troubled baseline.
Two days after the April 22 inspection, a follow-up visit found the restaurant in compliance. That rapid turnaround is a feature of Florida's inspection system: a facility can correct violations for a follow-up and return to operation. What the follow-up does not address is the question of how long those conditions existed before April 22, or how many customers ate at New China while the water supply was unapproved, the chemicals were improperly stored, and no one in charge was watching.
Open for Business
State inspectors documented seven high-severity violations at New China on April 22, 2026, including no approved potable water supply. The restaurant was not closed.
It served customers that day, and the days before the inspector arrived, under conditions the state's own violation classifications describe as posing direct risk of illness, chemical poisoning, and allergic reaction.
The follow-up inspection cleared it two days later. New China remains open.