POLK COUNTY, FL. A Lakeland GrillSmith drew seven high-severity violations in a single inspection last week, including no allergen awareness, no consumer advisory for raw foods, and failures in parasite destruction procedures, making it the county's worst performer in a week that saw 12 facilities across Polk accumulate multiple serious citations.
State inspectors visited 85 facilities across 83 locations between September 28 and October 4, 2026. Twelve of those facilities logged two or more high-severity violations. The problems ranged from unapproved food sources at a Winter Haven saloon to improper sewage disposal at a Davenport sushi restaurant.
The Worst of the Week
GrillSmith at 1569 Town Center Drive in Lakeland logged seven high-severity violations, the most of any facility inspected this week. Among them: no written employee health policy, an employee not reporting illness symptoms, no consumer advisory for raw or undercooked foods, and no demonstrated allergen awareness. Inspectors also found that parasite destruction procedures were not followed and that food contact surfaces had not been properly cleaned or sanitized.
The allergen finding alone carries serious weight. Food allergies affect an estimated 32 million Americans, and a kitchen with no demonstrated allergen awareness has no reliable way to prevent cross-contact between allergens and dishes that are supposed to be safe.
Mikado Sushi at 1979 Aegean Way in Davenport drew six high-severity violations. Inspectors cited inadequate handwashing facilities and improper handwashing technique, meaning the restaurant lacked both the infrastructure and the practice for basic hand hygiene. Food from an unapproved or unknown source was also documented, along with improperly cleaned food contact surfaces, improper use of time as a public health control, and no consumer advisory for raw foods. Two intermediate violations rounded out the inspection: improper sewage or wastewater disposal and multi-use utensils not properly cleaned.
Plaza Mexico Restaurant Bar Grill at 3635 S Florida Ave in Lakeland drew five high-severity violations, including no person in charge present or performing duties, improper handwashing technique, inadequate shellfish identification records, no consumer advisory for raw foods, and toxic chemicals improperly stored or labeled.
Philly Cheese Steak and Wing at 4963 US Hwy 98 N in Lakeland accumulated four high-severity violations: improper handwashing technique, parasite destruction procedures not followed, no consumer advisory, and toxic chemicals improperly stored or labeled.
Pizzano's Pizza and Grinder at 631A Hwy 17 92 W in Haines City was cited for four high-severity violations, including food not cooked to the required minimum temperature, improperly cleaned food contact surfaces, improper handwashing technique, and no consumer advisory.
Waffle House #831 at 4210 Lakeland Hills Blvd in Lakeland drew four high-severity violations: no person in charge, an employee not reporting illness symptoms, improper handwashing technique, and no consumer advisory. The combination of an absent manager and an unreported sick employee is a pattern inspectors consistently associate with outbreak conditions.
Old Man Franks Shore Saloon at 1005 S Lake Howard Drive in Winter Haven was cited for food from an unapproved or unknown source, no person in charge, improper handwashing technique, and no consumer advisory. Food from unapproved sources bypasses federal safety inspections entirely, leaving no traceability if a customer becomes ill.
Mister Fish at 715 E Palmetto St in Lakeland drew four high-severity violations: no employee health policy, an employee not reporting illness symptoms, improper handwashing technique, and improperly cleaned food contact surfaces.
All Star Grill at 2019 SR 60 E in Lake Wales was cited for food from an unapproved source, improperly cleaned food contact surfaces, and no consumer advisory, along with two intermediate violations including inadequate cooling and cold holding equipment and single-use items being improperly reused.
Davenport's Sports Bar and Grill at 1260 Posner Blvd drew three high-severity violations: improperly cleaned food contact surfaces, food not cooked to the required minimum temperature, and no consumer advisory.
Taste of India at 3114 S Florida Ave in Lakeland was cited for improper handwashing technique, improperly cleaned food contact surfaces, and no consumer advisory, along with improper use of wiping cloths as an intermediate violation.
Country Club of Winter Haven at 4200 Country Club Rd drew one high-severity violation, improperly cleaned and sanitized food contact surfaces.
What These Violations Mean
The most common high-severity violation this week, appearing at GrillSmith, Mikado Sushi, Plaza Mexico, Philly Cheese Steak and Wing, Pizzano's, Mister Fish, All Star Grill, Davenport's Sports Bar and Grill, Taste of India, and Country Club of Winter Haven, was improperly cleaned or sanitized food contact surfaces. Cutting boards, prep tables, and utensils that are not properly sanitized become direct transfer routes for bacteria. A surface contaminated with raw chicken that is later used for produce or a finished dish skips every other safety step in between.
Three facilities, GrillSmith, Waffle House #831, and Mister Fish, were cited for employees not reporting illness symptoms. This is not a paperwork problem. Norovirus, the most common cause of foodborne illness outbreaks in restaurants, spreads through a single infected food worker handling ready-to-eat foods. A written health policy, which GrillSmith and Mister Fish also lacked, is the mechanism that gives sick workers permission and instruction to stay home.
Food from unapproved or unknown sources, documented at Mikado Sushi, Old Man Franks Shore Saloon, and All Star Grill, removes the traceability that makes outbreak investigation possible. When a customer gets sick and inspectors need to trace the source, food that entered the building outside the licensed supply chain has no paper trail.
Parasite destruction failures at GrillSmith and Philly Cheese Steak and Wing are particularly relevant to menus that include raw or undercooked fish. Without documented freezing at the required temperature and duration, parasites including Anisakis in fish and Trichinella in pork can survive into the finished dish.
The Longer Record
The data does not include prior inspection counts for the facilities featured this week, which limits direct comparison of their histories. What the current inspection record does show is a concentration of systemic failures, not isolated slip-ups.
GrillSmith's seven high-severity violations span five distinct categories: illness policy, shellfish traceability, parasite procedures, surface sanitation, and allergen awareness. That breadth suggests failures across multiple operational areas simultaneously, not a single lapse on a bad day.
Mikado Sushi's combination of inadequate handwashing facilities, improper technique, unapproved food sources, and improper sewage disposal points to infrastructure and sourcing problems that are not corrected between inspections. Sewage disposal failures in particular are not minor maintenance issues; they represent a contamination risk that extends throughout a facility.
Waffle House #831 on Lakeland Hills Boulevard is a franchise location of a national chain with corporate food safety protocols. An absent person in charge, an employee not reporting illness symptoms, and improper handwashing technique at a location with standardized training requirements raises questions the inspection record alone cannot answer.
Old Man Franks Shore Saloon on Lake Howard Drive in Winter Haven was still serving food from an unapproved or unknown source as of last week's inspection.
