PASCO COUNTY, FL. Two restaurants in Pasco County each drew eight high-severity violations in a single inspection last week, leading a county-wide scorecard in which 12 of 37 facilities accumulated two or more critical citations between October 5 and October 11, 2026.
The Two Worst Offenders
Ayoki LLC on SR 54 in Lutz drew the broadest range of serious citations. Inspectors cited the facility for food not cooked to the required minimum temperature, food in poor condition, inadequate shellfish traceability records, and toxic chemicals stored improperly. They also found no consumer advisory posted for raw or undercooked foods, and cited an employee for failing to report illness symptoms.
The eighth high-severity violation at Ayoki was the most unusual of the week: food contact surfaces not properly cleaned or sanitized, combined with a separate citation for improper handwashing technique. Both violations in the same kitchen, on the same day, point to a systemic breakdown in basic hygiene practice rather than a single lapse.
Franks Restaurant on US Hwy 19 N in Hudson matched Ayoki's eight high-severity count and added four intermediate violations. Inspectors found food sourced from unapproved or unknown origins, a finding that carries particular weight because it means there is no supply chain documentation if customers become sick. They also cited the restaurant for food in poor condition, improperly cleaned food contact surfaces, no consumer advisory for raw or undercooked items, and two separate toxic substance violations: chemicals improperly stored and toxic substances improperly identified, stored, or used.
Franks had no written employee health policy, either, and inspectors found improper handwashing technique, the same citation that appeared at Ayoki, at Grillsmith, at China Express, at Joey's Pizza, at Social NPR, and at San Antonio Restaurant.
The Spread Across the County
Seafire Grill / Sunset Cove Grill and Bar on US Hwy 19 in New Port Richey drew six high-severity violations, including two that inspectors rarely see together: no person in charge present or performing duties, and food from an unapproved or unknown source. The combination matters because the absence of a responsible manager is associated with exactly the kind of sourcing and sanitation breakdowns inspectors found here. The facility also drew an intermediate citation for improper sewage or wastewater disposal.
Grillsmith Wesley Chapel on Piazza Ave also had no person in charge present, no written employee health policy, and an employee failing to report illness symptoms, all three of the major illness-transmission violations appearing in the same inspection. Inspectors also cited inadequate shell stock identification records, meaning the restaurant could not document the origin of shellfish on the menu.
Sasha's on Main Street in New Port Richey rounded out the six-high-severity tier. Inspectors found food not cooked to the required minimum temperature and no consumer advisory for raw or undercooked foods. An employee was cited for not reporting illness symptoms, and no written health policy was in place.
Trinity Sports Grill on Little Road in New Port Richey drew five high-severity violations, including inadequate shell stock records and no consumer advisory, alongside a citation for no person in charge. Inspectors also found improperly cleaned multi-use utensils and inadequate ventilation.
Panda Express #3091 on Word Way in New Port Richey was the only facility among the week's worst performers with zero intermediate violations but still drew five high-severity citations. Those included both inadequate handwashing facilities and improper handwashing technique, a pairing that suggests the problem exists at both the infrastructure and the training level. Inspectors also cited the location for time not properly used as a public health control, meaning food was held in the temperature danger zone without the documentation required to justify that practice.
China Express on Little Road in New Port Richey drew five high-severity violations including food from an unapproved or unknown source. That citation placed China Express alongside Franks Restaurant and Seafire Grill as the three Pasco County locations this week that could not account for where their food came from.
Joey's Pizza on Seven Springs Blvd in New Port Richey accumulated five high-severity and four intermediate violations. Food not cooked to the required minimum temperature appeared here alongside single-use items being reused and multi-use utensils not properly cleaned. That combination means contamination risks existed at both the cooking and the serving stages.
Social NPR on Main Street in New Port Richey drew four high-severity violations including improperly cleaned food contact surfaces and an intermediate citation for improper sewage or wastewater disposal.
Captain D's #3848 on S US Hwy 301 in Dade City and San Antonio Restaurant on SR 52 in San Antonio both drew citations for inadequate shell stock identification records and improperly stored chemicals. San Antonio Restaurant also drew an improper handwashing technique citation.
What These Violations Mean
The most alarming pattern in this week's Pasco County inspections is the concentration of illness-transmission violations. Six facilities, Ayoki LLC, Franks Restaurant, Seafire Grill, Grillsmith Wesley Chapel, Sasha's, and Joey's Pizza, were cited for employees not reporting illness symptoms. At four of those same locations, no written employee health policy existed. A policy is the mechanism by which a sick worker knows they are supposed to stay home or report symptoms. Without it, the decision is left to the individual employee, often under pressure to show up for a shift.
The food-from-unapproved-sources citations at Franks Restaurant, Seafire Grill, and China Express carry a different kind of risk. When food enters a kitchen from an uninspected or unknown source, there is no paper trail if customers become ill. Health investigators looking for the origin of a Listeria or Salmonella case need supplier records. Those records did not exist at three Pasco County locations this week.
Toxic chemical violations appeared at nine of the twelve worst-performing facilities this week. Improperly stored or unlabeled chemicals near food or food contact surfaces can cause acute poisoning, and the sheer frequency of this citation across the county suggests it is not being treated as a priority correction between inspections.
The shellfish traceability problem deserves particular attention. Ayoki LLC, Grillsmith Wesley Chapel, Trinity Sports Grill, Panda Express #3091, Captain D's, and San Antonio Restaurant all drew citations for inadequate shell stock identification records. Shellfish are filter feeders that concentrate bacteria, viruses, and toxins from the water they grow in. Without harvest location tags and supplier records, there is no way to trace an illness back to a contaminated bed.
The Longer Record
The prior inspection data for this week's worst performers reveals a county where some of these problems are not new. Franks Restaurant in Hudson carries one of the heavier inspection histories in this week's data, and this week's eight high-severity violations, including sourcing from unapproved origins and a dual toxic substance citation, represent a serious accumulation for any facility regardless of its history.
Ayoki LLC's record also warrants attention given the breadth of this week's findings. Eight high-severity violations spanning food safety, chemical storage, shellfish traceability, cooking temperatures, and employee illness reporting is not a narrow compliance gap. It reflects failures across multiple independent categories of food safety practice.
Captain D's #3848 in Dade City is a chain location, which makes its four high-severity violations this week worth noting. Chain operations typically carry corporate food safety protocols and training infrastructure that independent restaurants do not. The citations for improperly cleaned food contact surfaces and inadequate shell stock records at a national seafood chain are the kind of findings that are harder to attribute to resource limitations.
San Antonio Restaurant on SR 52 has one of the longer inspection histories in this week's data. Its three high-severity violations this week, including improper handwashing technique and improperly stored chemicals, are citations that appear repeatedly across Pasco County inspections and have not resolved at this location.
