CLERMONT, FL. State inspectors walked into San Jose's Original Mexican Restaurant on South Highway 27 on June 29 and found food coming from unapproved or unknown sources, a violation that means there is no way to trace where that food came from if a customer gets sick.
The restaurant collected seven high-severity violations and four intermediate violations during that single visit. It was not emergency-closed.
What Inspectors Found
The food sourcing citation is among the most serious a restaurant can receive. When food arrives outside the regulated supply chain, there is no USDA or FDA inspection record attached to it, no lot number to pull if an illness cluster emerges, and no way to notify customers after the fact.
Inspectors also found that food was not being cooked to required minimum temperatures. For poultry, the required threshold is 165 degrees Fahrenheit. Salmonella survives below that mark.
Toxic chemicals were stored or labeled improperly, meaning cleaning agents or other chemical products were in a position where they could contaminate food or be mistaken for something else. Food contact surfaces, the cutting boards and prep tables where meals are assembled, were not properly cleaned or sanitized.
No person in charge was present or performing duties at the time of the inspection. Handwashing facilities were inadequate, meaning employees may not have had the physical means to wash their hands properly even if they tried. The restaurant also lacked a consumer advisory for raw or undercooked items, the posted notice that warns elderly diners, pregnant women, and people with compromised immune systems that certain menu items carry elevated risk.
What These Violations Mean
Food from unapproved sources is not a paperwork problem. If a customer who ate at San Jose's on June 29 became ill, public health investigators would have no supply chain record to follow. There is no lot number, no distributor log, no way to identify whether other restaurants received the same product.
The undercooking violation compounds that risk directly. Poultry that does not reach 165 degrees can carry live Salmonella to the plate. Combined with food contact surfaces that were not properly sanitized, the pathway from contaminated ingredient to finished meal is short.
Improperly stored or labeled toxic chemicals represent a different category of danger entirely. A mislabeled chemical container in a kitchen can result in acute poisoning, not a delayed foodborne illness but an immediate one. The intermediate violations, including reused single-use items and improperly cleaned multi-use utensils, add further contamination pathways. Bacterial biofilms develop on inadequately cleaned utensils within 24 hours and are resistant to standard washing.
The absence of a person in charge during the inspection is significant in a specific way. CDC data shows that establishments without active managerial control accumulate critical violations at roughly three times the rate of those with engaged management on site. Every other violation on this list is easier to explain when no one is running the kitchen.
The Longer Record
The June 29 inspection was not an aberration. State records show 25 inspections on file for this location, with 230 total violations accumulated across that history.
Every inspection on record going back to June 2023 has included at least five high-severity violations. The December 2022 inspection produced ten high-severity violations and three intermediate ones, the worst single-visit count in the available history. The April 2022 inspection found five high-severity violations and three intermediate ones. The pattern has not broken in either direction.
The most recent inspection before June 29 was November 2025, when inspectors found five high-severity violations and three intermediate ones. Before that, April 2025 produced four high-severity violations and three intermediate ones. The facility has never been emergency-closed in its inspection history.
Seven consecutive inspections, stretching across nearly four years, have each produced at least three high-severity violations. The June 29 visit, with seven, is the second-highest single-visit count on record.
Open for Business
State inspectors documented seven high-severity violations at San Jose's Original Mexican Restaurant on June 29, 2026, including food from an unapproved source, undercooked food, improperly stored toxic chemicals, and no person in charge on the premises.
The restaurant was not closed.
